


Synthetic

by Ethirdil



Category: Cyberpunk 2077 (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, Blood and Violence, Decadence, Domestic Violence, Drug Use, Dystopia, Eventual Happy Ending, Explicit Language, Explicit Sexual Content, Falling In Love, M/M, Older Man/Younger Man
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-23
Updated: 2021-01-18
Packaged: 2021-03-10 19:54:11
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 31,768
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28272681
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ethirdil/pseuds/Ethirdil
Summary: V's chasing leads in the never sleeping Night City, working against the clock whilst a long dead Rockerboy and terrorist spews sarcastic comments from the sidelines.Kerry Eurodyne is lost in a life of boring comfort. He's not only partied away a liver, but his family and kids and now he hardly even leaves his North Oak villa.You all know the deal. Old tired Rockerboy turned mainstream for eddies gets a wake-up call from his old choom Johnny, in the shape of the struggling merc V.
Relationships: Kerry Eurodyne/Male V
Comments: 46
Kudos: 320





	1. V - Wake up

**Author's Note:**

> This fic diverges largely from the game in parts, but I've decided to use certain milestones from V and Kerry's romance as building points to drive the story forward in the beginning. I strived to make their relationship more real and less action-driven, less lacking in emotion and depth by exploring their personalities and their feelings, living as they do, where they are and with all the different consequences of that. 
> 
> V is a real person, so is Kerry (and Johnny in a sense), so less bloody gang-shootouts and more diving into their heads. 
> 
> I own nothing, all characters belong to M. Pondsmith through Talsorian Games and CDPR.

“Wake up choom,” static buzzed before his eyes as he rubbed them awake. His head was pounding from the night before, not only from too much booze, but from a nasty cut on his cheek and a bruised nose. “It’s past noon, gotta head out.”  
Jackie stood over the lumpy mattress V slept on in Mama Welles’ basement, smiling down on him and all V wanted was to go back to sleep and lick his wounds from the night before. There had been a brawl in the bar and as usual, he just couldn’t help himself. He had to butt in, too wasted and drunkenly hot-headed to even think before acting. 

As if Jackie could read his thoughts, the big man just chuckled as he threw a t-shirt in V’s face, “It’ll hurt for a few days mano. Don’t worry, you should’a seen the other guy.”  
“Doesn’t really help me now though, does it?” V’s voice was hoarse and his mouth tasted like rotten shit, dry and thick. Never again, he thought, knowing well enough it was a lie. Standing to pull the t-shirt over his head, he yawned, stretching his battered body. 

“Where’re we heading, anyway?”  
“Got a meet with a new fixer.” Jackie’s face lit up and V felt his eyes narrow. A new fixer? If this was another fucking Kirk, he’d kick Jackie’s ass, didn’t matter how much he loved the choom - never again.  
“Who?” V spoke as he walked into the small bathroom just outside his basement room, washing his face before staring into the mirror with a churning feeling of regret. Bruised and battered to the bone. His blonde hair a mess and dark blue eyes circled by dark purple and smeared black make up. _Fuck_ , V sighed as he washed his face clean.  
With an air of victory about him, Jackie leaned against the doorframe with his arms crossed over his chest. “DeShawn.”  
“The fuck, Jackie?” V turned around to face his old friend, gaping. “ _The_ Dexter DeShawn?”  
“The one and only.”  
“I thought he was out, done with biz. He’s back?” V’ raked his fingers through his hair, pulling the strands back, slick against his scalp and in place. “And, how the fuck have you connected to him?”  
“I’m charming, devoted. He got wind of my rep, and now he wants to meet with us both.”  
“About what, a job?”  
With a nod towards the door and a chuckle, Jackie left his room and V cleaned himself up before following. 

Growing up in Night City is different for everyone. For V, it meant a life constantly struggling to get out of the poverty in the slums. Heywood is no place for a kid, and he learned that long ago. Meeting Jackie was the best thing that could have happened to him and Mama Welles’ basement had been his safe haven for years. His drunken ass father hadn’t been in contact with him since he was thirteen and his mother was long dead, along with his baby sister. Gunned down in the streets for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. A common story in the ever-growing cesspit that was Night City. And still, V couldn’t help but to love it. The city worked against you in everything you did, with violence, decadence, despondence and poverty, but it also rewarded you with success, riches and fame if you did things right, if you fought your way to the top. 

For years he and Jackie had worked hard, doing whatever they could to climb the ladder of success. That fucking heist was going to be their in, their golden ticket to the top. And instead, V was left with a fucked up head, a dead best friend and a new heap of sentient shit constantly speaking to him from a piece of tech inside his head. Johnny _fucking_ Silverhand. Rockerboy extraordinaire and nuclear terrorist. 

The first few days after V woke up, Johnny had tried to flatline him more times than he could count, waking him up in the middle of the night trying to overtake him and once almost throwing him out from his window from the dirty little apartment in Watson, kicking the pills he’d gotten from Vic and Misty out of his own hands in an almost inhuman action V couldn’t even understand, looking back at it.  
It had been hell, those first few days. The pain from the shot in his head. _Motherfucking_ Dexter DeShawn. If he wasn’t already dead and laying rotting in the city’s communal dump, V would head out there and kill him again - and again and again. That fat fucker was the cause of all this bullshit. 

And Jackie… Jackie was gone.  
Dead.  
In one of his few clear moments, he had been able to return Mama Welles’ many calls. She cried and V cried with her, mourning and feeling himself choking on the pain of losing one of the few real friends he had ever had. Him and Jackie hadn’t known each other their whole lives, even though they basically grew up on the same street. Jackie was a few years older than V and ran with the Valentino’s - and V had been a Rockerboy ever since he could hold a guitar in his hands and understand the injustice raging all around him. It was the only good thing his asshole of a dad had ever left him; music and rage. But Jackie and V had eventually found each other by chance and started working together. Jackie had protection, something V lacked, and V wanted more than just playing gigs at down-ridden bars and murky night clubs. He wanted fame, success - wanted to someday have enough dough to say ‘fuck it’ to everything and spend the rest of his remaining days by a quiet pool in North Oak or whatever the fuck fancy enough to get away from the bug-infested holes that he grew up in. 

Now, he’d have nothing. He was dying. The _malware_ in his head would eat him up, devour him from inside and eventually leave nothing but a shell that was not even him anymore. All of V’s dreams, everything he wanted to do… It was all a big load of nothing. Unless he managed to find a way to rip this fucking thing out of his head.  
Vic, the ripperdoc who’d taken care of him, saved his life, said there’s nothing to be done. _Fuck that_ , Johnny had growled inside his head and V tried not to listen to him, tried to shut the fucker out. It was all useless. If Johnny wanted to be heard, he’d just scream until V was forced to listen. _Dick_. 

V had to put up with a lot of shit from not only Johnny, but every fucking piece of shit he ran into in the city during the following months, searching every nook and cranny for some choom to dig the chip out of his head. He’d wasted eddies and gained even more, along with more street cred he could have ever wished for.  
As soon as he had befriended Johnny’s old friend and ex, Rogue, it was as if the city opened itself to him like a willing lover for the first time in his life. Being under Rogues protection meant he was basically untouchable, all the while the jobs she got him earned him _a lot_ of eddies. With her help, he had managed to track down Anders Hellman, a Swedish former Arasaka-scientist who’d helped create the chip. Not that Hellman managed to help him like he’d hoped, but at least he’d gotten the chip’s blueprints and that was better than nothing. Johnny went on and on about Mikoshi and Alt Cunningham, but V was beginning to become used to the idea of not finding any cure, of Johnny taking over. 

In the beginning, he had loathed Johnny, had wanted to rip the chip out himself, fuck the consequences, but the asshole in his head had grown on him. He was still an arrogant dickhead who spoke too much shit for his own good, but they weren’t all that different in the end. Johnny wanted to nuke Arasaka and level everything the Corpos stood for to the ground - and the way they had fucked V over with this chip, with basically everything in his short and loathsome life, he couldn’t help but to want the same.  
He had seen the way the Corpos feed on keeping a large part of the population poor and brainwashed. He had lived it his whole life. The one percent used the gangs of the city for profit and keeping people scared, and then they used their own corporate armies to keep people in line, all the while the vast majority of NC’s population suffered beneath them. 

It wasn’t a life V wanted to live, never had been. Before it had always been about the scratch, about eddies. Now, with Johnny constantly nagging him with politics, he’d begun to understand again, truly understand - or maybe Johnny had done a real number on him, brainwashing him from the inside? It was beginning to become difficult to tell considering all the shit they’d been through. 

People had died, so many people. They’d broken in to Arasaka HQ, infiltrated the Voodoo Boys, V had died and been rebooted, knocked out and beat up while running with Nomads and Moxes, and on and on it went. And during all of that, V’s headaches were getting worse, more intense. Some days it felt as if he was about to just fall down and die, but somehow, he managed to get up, managed to continue. Another day, another lead to follow. 

_“I once said I’d take her to the movies…”_ Johnny reminisced in his head, appearing out of the corner of his eye, static buzzing as Johnny sat back on his haunches and petted Nibbles.  
_“What?”_ V sighed, raking his hand through his dirty hair, laying back in his bed.  
_“Rogue.”_ Johnny lit a cigarette - as if the motion was so natural to him he did it without thinking, still knowing he’d only taste it if V smoked. V didn’t feel like a smoke just now, his head felt too sore. _“I wanna take her to the movies.”_  
_“Like… On a date?”_  
Johnny seemed to think for a moment before he stood and shrugged, _“Yeah, on a date. Though… It means I’ll take over for a while, again.”_  
Ugh. The last time Johnny had taken over, V had woken up with a hangover worse than anything he’d had in years and as soon as he turned in bed, he was puking his guts out on the floor whilst Johnny sat on the couch just next to him, mocking him for being weak. _Asshole_. He’d smelled of sex, booze, puke and smoke and even the hour-long shower he’d taken as soon as he’d gotten home hadn’t been able to wash off the disgust he’d felt. 

_“Seriously?”_ V rubbed his face, annoyed. _“I’m not trusting you with that shit again. You fucked someone, as_ me _. Not fucking cool, dude.”_  
Johnny sighed, _“Psh. Don’t be so sensitive. You’re worse than fucking Kerry.”_  
_“And you’re a fucking cunt, a dead fucking zombie who’s got nothing better to do than to terrorize me all day long. Fuck you Johnny.”_  
_“So…”_ Johnny walked over to V’s bed, leaning over him and gazing at him from over his dark shades. _“Is that a yes?”_  
“Ugh,” turning away from Johnny, V closed his eyes, _“I’ll call her for you tomorrow. Now just let me sleep.”_


	2. Kerry - A sad truth

A Rockerboy turning rock star is a sad tale.  
A Rockerboy turning rock star turning old, is sadder.  
Looking at himself in the mirror, Kerry could hardly recognize himself. He couldn’t remember a time before his body was filled with ink and metal. He didn’t necessarily regret any of it, what he’d done to his body. But regrets, he had them and too many to boot.  
He looked tired, aged. Long gone was his youth, and still he carried those memories and scars with him every day. They had soured everything in his life, deprived him of family and friends. And what did he have now? A huge villa filled with useless junk and expensive shit he didn’t even use. He had a few friends, but they didn’t know him and didn’t really want to. They loved knowing Eurodyne - but as soon as he showed just an inkling of what was inside, they turned away, and so he had learned not to show anything beyond the rocker persona. If he wanted to fuck, he could get anyone. If he wanted to get drunk he’d get drunk. He’d already wasted one liver away, what was another?  
He had no contact with his kids - he’d been a disappointment from the start, shouldn’t even have tried being ‘normal’ in the first place. He had been confused, and Louise had felt used; which was only the truth. It wasn’t that he wasn’t attracted to her, she just didn’t have the right… parts. They had tried, but Kerry Eurodyne was a mess, had been for years and nothing ever lasted. The few longer relationships he’d had had gone to hell. Fucking a groupie or a random one-night-stand was all he could still take and come away from it somewhat intact. 

Stepping into the shower, Kerry closed his eyes and allowed the warm water to soak into his hair and skin. It felt preem and he lost himself for a few moments just standing there, allowing the water to cascade over him like a warm waterfall back in the Philippines. He hadn’t been truly home in a long while now. Hadn’t been time, he told himself even though he knew it to be a blatant lie. He hardly even left his own house these days, too broken and shy and haggard, lost in a life he was pretty sure he really didn’t want to live but was too comfortable to be without. 

An old man living on long gone memories. _Pathetic_ , he though as he rubbed designer shower gel onto his skin, moisturizing and peeling. Even that was a fucking routine now, keeping himself looking young and fresh, even though his skin should be wrinkling and saggy. It wasn’t, of course. He had scratch enough to look forty for the rest of his damn life. And, he was vain. He could admit that, even if only to himself. _Whatever_. 

As he stepped out of the shower, dripping, he heard a sound from outside his large bathroom and he stilled, listening. He wasn’t expecting someone. The cook wasn’t coming until tomorrow, the cleaning he had told to fuck off for the time being and his latest toy had been driven off late last night. The only ones in the house would be him, or security.  
Now, there was someone playing a guitar in his house, and not any song either. A song he hadn’t heard in a _really_ long fucking time. The wrong version. _Johnny’s_ version. 

Grabbing his phone, Kerry logged into his security system and scrolled through the cams to find the invader. It could be fucking anyone or _anything_. Not having to put up with crazed psycho-fans, stalkers or even a deranged cyberpsychos was why he had security, and now this _someone_ , whoever it was, had managed to get inside his house. Cold panic wracked through Kerry as he watched the cams, looking for the intruder. When he finally found him, he saw that it was a young man. Maybe he recognized him, though he wasn’t sure. He looked like a tall Rockerboy in his tight black jeans, studded winklepickers and cut-off leather vest littered with band-patches and studs.  
A psycho-fan, then? Kerry surmised as anger rose inside him. Who did he think he was, breaking into _his_ home and playing _his_ guitars? The guy was obviously whack, but could still be dangerous.  
Taking a deep breath, Kerry dug through his cabinets, eventually finding the gun hidden beneath the towels, he’d left guns in every room around the large house out of paranoia during one all too lucid trip a few months back, and threw on a gaudy-looking silk robe he never used and unlocked the bathroom door. 

“Who the _fuck_ …” he began as he waved the gun towards the stranger sitting by his guitars. Then, he stilled, chock coming over him as he heard _how_ that damned song was played. “Keep playing”, he waved the gun again. The person sitting there, this _kid_ , smirked and continued. His smirk oddly familiar, but by now Kerry was sure he’d never seen this guy before. He was handsome, for sure, and no matter how high or how fucked up he’d been, he would have remembered him. Looking like some fucking Rockerboy god Kerry would have bent over for a thousand times in his youth. And he was playing… Argh, playing, _fuck_! “Johnny?”  
The man just kept smirking, looking all too familiar and too fucking arrogant.  
“Nah, nah…” Kerry shook his head, laughing to himself, “Can’t be. This is some fucking joke.”  
But the fucker had something in his eyes, in the way he reclined on the bench, in the way he _smirked_ and _played_ that was all… _him_.  
“Wait, wait, wait… What was the last thing Silverhand told me before he died?”  
“This a test?” The arrogant prick answered, leaning the guitar against the bench and looking _so much_ like his long lost best friend.  
“ _Answer me_!”  
“Told you to go your own way… Leave Samurai. Clearly I was right, as I often am.” 

The air left Kerry and he could feel himself stumble back, lowering the gun and dropping it on the floor. Good thing it didn’t go off, as his head was spinning and he wasn’t all there for a few seconds.  
“Johnny… Fucking… Silverhand.”  
“The one and only.”  
He wanted to puke, no he _needed_ to puke, but the guy sitting there claiming to be, and so obviously _being_ Johnny, just watched him calmly, lighting a cigarette.  
“Hey shithead, gimme one of those.” Kerry said as he picked up the gun from the floor and went to sit down beside him, just breathing for a moment, before he backhanded the guy that wasn’t Johnny but still was, straight across his face.  
“Fuck!” Johnny hissed, rubbing his cheek. “V won’t like that,” he said before pulling up his cigarette case - a strange-looking one that must belong to a woman. “Shocker, huh?”  
“Fuck you.” 

They were silent for the entirety of the smoke, just staring. Kerry couldn’t really focus. He had so many goddamn questions and shit he wanted to say. Eventually they slipped into it. Johnny talked, explained - and it all became so clear and fucked up, Kerry didn’t know what to do with what poured out of the mouth that wasn’t Johnny’s. They reminisced about old times, joked and drank; it was nostalgic and strange, but felt good all the same.  
Johnny, being Johnny, was on his ass about selling out to the Corpos, living the life up on this hill with all the other one percenters - and what could Kerry do? He shrugged Johnny’s shit off of his shoulders, tried not to let his old friend’s words get to him, even though they fucking did. They soared through him, like they always had even though they were only in his head. Johnny was back, but he had haunted Kerry for fifty fucking years. 

After a few hours, V, the guy who’s body Johnny ‘borrowed’ came to. Johnny had told him as much would happen, though it was still awkward to see his friend disappear into someone completely different and foreign to Kerry. He was just a kid, basically. Twenty-something and in his peak, gorgeous as no one had a right to be and for some reason Kerry felt his confidence dent a little upon realizing he was now alone with this stranger, staring at him.  
“Johnny?”  
“Nah, sorry.” The kid said, “It’s V now. I’ll… I’ll leave.” 

V. _Vee_? Strange name, Kerry thought but said nothing about it. Instead he shook his head, holding up his hand.  
“Johnny told me this would happen, don’t worry. Sit down for a moment, relax. He told me about everything. Thank you, for letting Johnny… ”  
V shrugged and stood, somewhat unsteadily, and frowned as in pain. “No problem.”  
“We talked about getting the band back together,” Kerry said, “I’ll call you with more details… Johnny will talk to ya.”  
“Sure, sure.” V said. “I… I’ll see you around.”  
“Yeah.” Kerry answered, dumbly, as he watched V leave. 

What a fucking night.


	3. V - We're getting the band back together

It’s not as if he hadn’t known he was going to Kerry Eurodyne’s house. It’s not as if he didn’t do the breaking in, in the first place. And still, when Johnny left control of his body to himself, he stood tongue tided in front of a legend with a pummeled face and V couldn’t help but to rage at Johnny for the shit he always pulled.  
Legend or not, Johnny was a legend too, but he was always around these days - and believe it or not, V had gotten used to the piece of shit stirring up his brain. But Eurodyne, he was alive and just right in front of him, pale green eyes large in shock mixed with curiosity at the same time as V tried to regain his bearings from having been out of his body for a good long while.  
To say it was awkward, was putting it lightly. He felt like a gonk as he walked out of the large North Oak villa and onto the swirling pavement outside the high walls. Eurodyne was not… What he had expected. He must be over eighty by now, but looked half his age if it weren’t for his silver hair. He was a few inches shorter than V, but tall for a Filipino. He had a soft look about him, even though he was known for his rock’n’roll lifestyle of drugs, sex and debauchery. But it’s all image, supposedly, V thought. Had the alleged attempted suicide been all image too?  
Johnny just chuckled darkly in his mind and it was all the answer V needed. 

_”So, getting the band together again, huh?”_ V asked Johnny as he started up Jackie’s arch, letting the motor run for a minute before beginning his ride home.  
_”Thought it would straighten Kerry up. Seemed to me he needs it. Getting too comfy in that gonk house of his.”_  
_”He might just be depressed, and in need of a cleaning lady.”_  
_”Yeah,”_ Johnny sighed, _”That million eddie villa sure looked like shit on the inside. Kerry was always messy.”_  
_”Seems like it._  
_”You gotta call Nance, or rather… Beth Isis. Kerry added her number to your phone. He’ll set up a meet with Denny and Henry.”_  
_”You’ve got to be kidding me.”_ V sighed, rubbing his forehead. When Johnny glared at him, his arms crossed over his chest, V gave in - something he did all too often these days. _”Fine, have it your way, asshole.”_

Getting to Nance wasn’t easy. After several infuriating phone calls to her flippant assistant, V managed to find out she’d tried to infiltrate the fucking Maelstrom’s, but had been caught - because of course she was. She was a grey-haired lady decked out in outdated threads and that if anything, that didn’t scream raging psycho bot, did it? No, exactly - and so V had to drag his ass out to the industrial parts of Watson and basically shoot his way out of there with Nance complaining all the way back about losing her story.  
“Fuck your story.” V hissed as he pulled her into his dank car. “Kerry sent me.”  
“Kerry? Why didn’t you say so? What does he want?”  
“Ugh.” V rolled his eyes and started up his car, his wheels screaming as he drove off.

A week passed without hearing anything and Johnny began to become jittery, plaguing him more than he usually did, pacing back and forth as V tried to do his biz in peace. A few drives here and there, getting shit done for Wakako and ignoring calls from a pissed off Corpo-bitch harassing him about the Valentino-Jesus fucker he’d accidentally run into during a gig to off him. It was a truly gonk story, a fiasco the whole thing. Not exactly being a believer himself, V didn’t necessarily care that much, but a dude flatlining himself getting nailed to a cross in a BD? That’s all kinds of fucked up. 

Being an Edgerunner merc wasn’t all it was cracked up to be. V had been born to be a Rockerboy and much of him still was, though he’d never found his break with the music and he’d tired of the politics quickly. He’d seen what it had done to his dad, and it wasn’t pretty. Edgerunning or doing gigs for fixers wasn’t better, if truth be told, but at least he wouldn’t leave much behind when his body finally gave in to the chip and he disappeared from this world. 

_“Call ‘im.”_  
_”No.”_  
_”It’s taking too long, what the hell is he up to?”_  
_”Man, please! Shut the fuck up, will ya? I’m trying to crack this code.”_ V pushed the keyboard away, glaring at Johnny, who sat surly fake-smoking his cigarette. _“He’ll_ obviously _call when he’s ready.”_

It took two hours and Kerry’s face showed up on his phone, asking for Johnny as if V was his fucking mother ‘No, Johnny can’t come out and play’. V ground his teeth.  
Kerry wanted to meet, wanted V and not just Johnny, as it was V who was helping organizing it all and would ‘loan’ his body for the gig. He’d busted Henry out of rehab and they were all meeting at Denny’s house, a close neighbor to Kerry up in North Oak. 

Driving there again felt strange. V couldn’t shake the feeling he didn’t belong, wasn’t supposed to be included in this. This was all happenstance, something that had fallen to him due to fate, or some fucked up version of fate. Johnny he could deal with. Death, he could deal with, but a bunch of old-timers his dad had worshipped fifty years ago? V wasn’t all that sure he needed that. Wasn’t all that sure he liked how nervous Kerry had made him or the fact that Johnny could feel it inside him. 

“V!” He heard Kerry’s voice has he arrived, having found the gate closed but the lawn to the right completely massacred from large wheels, and he’d followed the uprooted grass until he arrived to a somewhat… chaotic scene. A woman he surmised was Denny was yelling and threatening a shorter, gaunt-looking junkie laying in a sunbed laughing, with a studded baseball bat. Kerry stood off to the side, well away from the escalating situation by the… _What the hell_? The large pool was filled with… Was that cement? _Holy shit_! 

“Hey Kerry.” V walked over, momentarily ignoring to spectacle going on a few feet away, pulling his shades up on his head. Thankfully, Kerry was wearing normal clothes this time around; a studded biker vest and tight pants, all black. That bizarre robe he’d worn when V woke up in his villa had done the man no favors, to be honest. Now, however, he looked like the Kerry Eurodyne from the posters and screamsheets. He wasn’t a bad looking man, but he was different from how V had imagined him. He seemed subdued, careful. A far cry from the loud Rockerboy V had grown up listening to on his dad’s old records. From the little he had seen so far of Kerry, he seemed to be the opposite of Johnny, who was determined and loud, said what he thought without pardon and fuck everyone else who thought differently. Kerry wasn’t loud, he spoke carefully but surely without sudden movements. V thought him relaxed, but somewhat withdrawn. “What’s going on?” 

_”Jesus Christ, here we go again. Haven’t missed this shit.”_ V heard Johnny’s voice and could see him walking over to the fighting pair by the pool. 

“This…” Kerry shook his head. “Good you’re here. We… We’ve got a problem. Denny and Henry don’t get along.”  
Glancing over to the pool and then back to Kerry, V raised his eyebrows, cocking his head. “I can see that. What the hell happened?”  
_”Hoo boy.”_ Johnny spoke as he sat down on a free sunbed close to Denny and Henry.  
“Long story. Seems Henry didn’t know Denny’s been here in Night City all along, and I might have just given him her address.”  
“Preem.”  
“Mm.” Kerry rubbed his face, sighing. “Gotta fix this shit.”  
“Where’s Nance, by the way?” V looked around, there was no sign of the rebellious journalist anywhere.  
“Still on that Swedenborg shit or whatever their name is… Augh, who cares! She’ll be there when she is needed. C’mon. Gotta talk these two gonks straight.” 

The chaos by the pool was a sight to behold. Henry, the absolute meathead, had driven a fucking industrial cement truck into Denny’s backyard and emptied it into her pool, which was now on its way from quicksand to a huge block of concrete. Denny swung her bat at Henry as Kerry and V approached, Kerry almost seeming to hide behind V. 

“What the fuck is this shit? Is this your doing, Ker?” Denny shouted, pointing the bat at Kerry.  
“Hey, I’m sorry,” Kerry kept his distance as Denny’s eyes turned to V.  
“And who’re you? His fucking back up?”  
“We’re here for the band. We’re bringing Samurai back together for one gig.”  
“And who’re you supposed to be?” Denny’s eyes narrowed as she looked from V to Kerry and back. “Seem a far cry from Silverhand.”  
V almost wanted to laugh for the truth of it, but Johnny sat shaking his head at him, and V sighed.  
“I’m good. I know my shit.”  
“I vouch for him.” Kerry said. “But Henry, are you out of your fucking mind with the pool? What the actual fuck? We need Denny to play with us.”  
“Just wanted to clear the air!” Henry shouted, unbothered as he stretched out like a junked up lazy cat on the sunbed.  
“Fucking preem.” Kerry shook his head.  
“I’m out if this shitstain is playing with you. No. Fucking. Way.” Denny hissed, her large afro hair almost bouncing from anger as she glared at Henry.  
“Denny, please…” Kerry said, sounding as if the air went out of him. “Don’t make me choose.”  
“Too bad, this is your own doing, Eurodyne. It’s me or _him_.” Denny swung the bat toward Henry again.  
“We should be able to borrow someone else for the gig, I guess.” Kerry sighed, his hands on his hips. “Fuck, Henry, why’d ya have to go and do this shit, huh? Got no choice now, you’re out.” 

To say Henry didn’t take it well, was an understatement. Though, he didn’t seem to be all there in any way, V thought as he watched the junkie storm off, swearing to himself and flipping them all off. 

Explaining to Denny and Nance about the whole Johnny-thing seemed like a bad idea to Johnny, Kerry and V alike, so the girls were kept out of this unholy threesome during the preparations for the gig.  
The gig was in a month’s time and it was a week later that they all met up for the first time to jam together. Johnny stayed on his best behavior, according to himself and Kerry alike. If the girls noticed a difference in V’s behavior from when they didn’t jam, to when they did, they said nothing.  
V had no idea what Johnny was about when he was doing his thing, V had only seen it on old holos and ancient videos, but they seemed to be happy about the result and when V came back to his body, sitting inside Kerry’s luxury car on the way towards Watson, Kerry was like a child at Christmas.  
“You’re doing really good with this shit V. Thank you for it.”  
“Don’t mention it.”  
“Nah, I’m serious. Really appreciate what you’re doing.”  
“Thanks.” V said, giving the old rocker a vague smile before pointing to the left. “You can drop me off here.”  
“Sure.”  
When the car stopped outside the large stairs leading up to megabuilding H10, the people standing around them gawked. Fortunately, you couldn’t see inside the car, something V was pretty certain Kerry was glad for. He was one of the most famous rock stars living in NC.  
“I’ll call ya soon.”  
“Yeah. Thanks for the ride.”  
V jumped out of the car quickly and as soon as he was out, Kerry was driving off. 

Inside his apartment Nibbles was waiting for him, her bowl still half-full but with a hole in the middle where she’d eaten all the food. She meowed for more and V sighed, shaking his head at the little stray he’d taken in. Nibbles had turned into a sweet thing who clung to him when he tried to work and slept close to him every night, like a band-aid on his chest. Like all cats in the city, Nibbles had no fur and looked more alien than what V supposed cats used to look like before all the radiation and shit, but she was still soft like a warm peach, and sweeter than one as well.  
V yanked off his boots and shrugged off his cut-off before grabbing a burrito from the machine and flopping down into his couch, zapping between the channels on the TV. Johnny had fucked off somewhere in his mind and for once, V had a calm night. He was high on eddies and had no urgent biz to take care of. It seemed like a small slice of heaven in between the hell he seemed to be wading through daily these days. 

V’s phone lit up and he took it, unlocking it.  
**Kerry Eurodyne** : _What’s up? Seemed a bit off earlier._  
**V** : _Just tired, got a lot on my mind lately. You alright?_  
**Kerry Eurodyne** : _Yeah, ’m good :P Just jamming on some new stuff. Johnny said u used to play. U miss it?_  
**V** : _Sometimes, yeah. Don’t have much time for it anymore._  
**Kerry Eurodyne** : _We should jam together sometime, just u and me. Whaddya say? ;)_  
**V** : _I’ll hold you to that._  
**Kerry Eurodyne** : _I fucking hope so ;P G’night V._

Kerry had texted him before, short messages mostly directed towards Johnny or regarding their gig, or when they all should meet up jamming for it. This was different. There was a playfulness to him in the messages V had seen glimpses off and it did something to him, made his stomach roll in a good way, in a way he hadn’t felt in ages. Was Eurodyne flirting with him? He didn’t give off that impression when they met. 

_”He’s shy, always has been when not drunk. Kerry carries his emotions on his sleeve like a fucking sap.”_ Johnny broke in from the corner of the couch like an infestation no one had asked for. _”You’re his type.”_  
_“Not interested. So you can shut up now, thanks.”_  
_”No? You forget I can hear your thoughts, feel your emotions. What’s that in your belly? Is it… No, V, it’s not butterflies for our little Ker is it?”_  
V glared at the malware stuck in his head before he turned away from him, hellbent on ignoring the bastard.  
_”C’mon…I don’t see what’s so bad about it. He could be like a sugar daddy. He’s still got his looks, is wealthy as fuck, sold out to the Corpos, but what the fuck. The choom’s getting old and has always been more for the scratch than politics anyway. From what I can remember, people used to say he was a good fuck back in the day… Not that I ever tried. Don’t swing that way. Maybe I should have? Might have lost out on something. You do, however, swing that way, don’t cha? And Ker sure does. Or, both ways as it is, I suppose? Eh, who the fuck knows? He’s got kids. Never imagined him with fucking kids-“_  
“ _Shut. Up_ , Johnny!” V threw an empty can Johnny’s way, but it went straight through him and bounced a few inches away from Nibbles, making the cat jump away with a screech.  
_”What?”_  
_“Go eat a dick.”_  
_“Yeah, you’d love that, wouldn’t you?”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm listening to a lot of music writing this. Much of it's from the game, others are bands I've loved since I was a tiny little punk teen who loved rock'n roll and studded clothes (still do). 
> 
> From the game soundtrack I'd recommend these:  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vMIf7DKzWEM - Kerry's version of 'Chippin' in' (heard in Johnny's memory before blowing up Arasaka and dying)  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6sWjaOuvTWM - Mark Taylor's version of Kerry's boat song, imo the best version yet
> 
> Pick from my own playlist (not in-game):  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PtH39eQmN2o - Hardcore Superstar - Into debauchery  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=21FREE5pXBQ - Hardcore Superstar - Beg for it  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JNer_b8JljY - Hardcore Superstar - Medicate me  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7r6CpKv5J9s - Hellacopters - Hey!  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tSGAJPNi6m8 - Backyard Babies - Robber of life  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2k0nEjYAESk - Backyard Babies - Bombed (out of my mind)


	4. Kerry - Chippin' in

Kerry never really got up early. Before, he just had a really hard time doing it. Now, he didn’t because he didn’t have to. Lazing in bed was a luxury on its own, being woken up by the sun as the large panorama windows’ shade turned from dark to light around noon, the hill tops of North Oak greeting him, along with the swaying palm trees and the distant view of the city center. A beautiful sight, even though his house looked like shit. He really ought to call in the maid, if she’d even want to come back after the last time. He’d flipped her off, flying high on some really good stuff hitting him a little sideways in the head.   
He got his phone and called his assistant, quickly demanding someone come do something about the state of his place. Tapping his way into his messages, he went over the last conversation he’d had with V a few days ago. He hadn’t heard anything from him since. He seemed pretty busy, handling his biz or whatever it was he was doing to earn scratch. A merc, Johnny had said, but hinted at something more akin to a criminal, though not a gangbanger. Many merc’s were on the wrong side of the law, Kerry knew, however many of them just did biz balancing on the right side of shady biz. But this was Night City, and if V was on the wrong side - what the fuck did he care? It might even be useful. And he did look good. God, he did. But he was a kid, just a few years older than his own kids, even though Kerry couldn’t even begin to compare his own spoiled brats to the quiet and somewhat taciturn merc that had brought Johnny back to him, after fifty years. Seeing Johnny in those deep blue eyes had been bizarre, to say the least. But when V was himself and Johnny stayed away, it was hard not to admire him for the seemingly easy way he just radiated a quiet charisma and a damn fatal appeal. Tall, sleek and lithe with perfectly muscled arms, just visible tattoos but not too heavy on the ink, a fair and somewhat sharp complexion telling of Scandinavian heritage. 

Fuck, he could almost bet his house that V had some Swedish, Norwegian or Danish heritage; it was just his luck - and his type. Tall, quiet with striking, fine features, blonde and blue eyed. Basically his own opposite, even though Kerry was tall for a Filipino, his features were dark and a bit rounded, something he’d struggled with a lot before, when he was younger. Johnny was tall, pale and handsome - his heritage typically American and mixed beyond knowledge, but he was white - a norm, still. Fifty years later, the world did look different from how it had in 2020. More people from Asia had arrived to the American continent, many of them settling in Night City, rebuilding the city to an even larger and more pronounced melting pot of cultures, all mixing together - or not, depending on the different districts. But growing up in the America that was, looking so different from the majority around him, had left its traces, traces Kerry still hadn’t completely shaken. 

Having enough of his own whining, he dragged himself out of bed and walked over to the jukebox in the next room, kicking it so it started up, coughing up a record and pushing play, blasting chrome core throughout the villa as he walked into the upstairs bathroom and straight into the shower. He’d always slept naked, felt strange not to, with clothes chafing and curling. When he came out, a double espresso was already ready and hot for him in the in the bar outside his bathroom. Another day, so many dull chores to ignore. 

After a long and miserable conversation with his gonk manager, Kerry drove off to the studio to work on his new album. He had no inspiration, hadn’t had any real inspiration in months. He was stuck, but the company demanded he worked, so at least he would put in some hours at the studio, even if it didn’t come to anything.   
Arriving at the studio, he met up with his usual sound technician, chatted for a while, before they talked over different sounds and tracks, what needed to be changed and what was alright as it was. It wasn’t exciting, neither was it dull. It was more akin to the monotonous work in an industry that Kerry had worked at in his youth. He did everything without thinking, without passion just because he needed to do it. And he hated it. 

His pocked buzzed and Kerry picked up his phone.   
**V** : _Hey, you busy?_   
**Kerry Eurodyne** : _No, what’s up? :)_   
**V** : _Thought about taking you up on your offer. Have some time to spare. You free tonight?_   
**Kerry Eurodyne** : _For a session? Always ;P I’m at the studio, u wanna come by?_  
 **V** : _Nova! I’ll be there in a few. Address?_  
 **Kerry Eurodyne** : _Sending it to u now… See ya soon ;)_

When V finally showed up, the technician had left and Kerry was nursing a beer, plonking away on his guitar, reclined on the couch, trying to find a good rhythm for some riffs he’d worked on for a while. When V was buzzed in, walking with a carefree swagger, Kerry’s lips couldn’t help a small twitch that gave in to a smile. The man could have easily made it as a model instead of an Edgerunner slash Rockerboy merc. As a front figure, he’d steal every last heart of the edgy girls in Night City.   
V wasn’t one for smiling easily, Kerry had noticed, but a small crooked smile played on his lips as he flopped down on the couch besides Kerry, setting his guitar case beside him.   
“Hey,” Kerry nodded towards the small fridge just beside the couch as he kept playing the same slow riffs over and over, working them as they came to him, slower, faster, rolling with the tunes as he did. “Grab a cold one.”   
“Thanks,” V said and did just that. He was dressed in his usual attire, black slim fitting pants, this time some sort of synth-leather, with those worn winklepickers and his patched cut-off and a black hoodie beneath. Nothing glamorous, just typical Rockerboy from the slums, even though if Kerry was to believe Johnny, V had no shortage of scratch anymore. But, he should know himself, it takes some time for the stripes to wash off. If you’re used to having little to nothing, sometimes you’re more comfortable not spending it like there was no tomorrow. 

After a few beers and some talk over guitars, they sat together, jamming, just like Kerry and Johnny had done a lifetime ago. They worked over the riffs Kerry had been struggling with, testing their way forward, finding new combinations, new rhythms. V was obviously rusty, but Kerry could see the music came naturally to him, like second nature. He was nowhere near as good as Johnny had been, nor as Kerry, but the kid had potential. 

“This for a new song?” V asked after a long silence, with only their guitars speaking for them.   
“Maybe…” Kerry took a long swig from his beer, smiling slightly. “Haven’t decided yet.”   
“I like it. It’s got a soft undertone, but there’s something there, something that’s hard to touch, but it touches you, ya know?”   
Kerry chuckled and looked up at V, his dark blue eyes glistening in the dim light as he watched him back.   
“Johnny’s not there now?”  
“Johnny’s always there,” V looked away, his face growing troubled as he frowned, but seemed to quickly shake himself out of it. “But he chooses to zone out sometimes, give me some lone time.”   
Kerry grimaced and nodded, humming as he continued to play. “It’s hard, isn’t it? Having him there? Fuck knows he wasn’t an easy person to be around most of the time.”   
V shrugged, “Gotten used to it. He’s a fucking pain in the ass, no way around it. At least he doesn’t try to flatline me twice a day anymore.”   
Kerry chuckled, it sounded like Johnny alright. “Yeah, he was a prick. But he had good sides too. Loyal to a fault, supportive when he wanted to. Never forgot his friends, or where he came from.”   
V nodded, “You know, I was so scared the first time I woke up with him in my head. Thought I’d died, or gone completely off the rails, becoming a cyberpsycho or something. He frightened the living shit out of me. I mean, Johnny fucking Silverhand, in my head. Fucking whack.”   
“Yeah, wouldn’t wanna be you, to be honest. Even though it’s fucking nova having him back. But,” Kerry sat up, putting his guitar away, “Johnny was always too intense for his own good. Scared many people away with his antics and fucked up shit. Fired shots from the stage a couple of times, almost shot some fans.Tallked about kidnapping Corpos and dragging them up… Eh, it was enough the fans were fucking killing each other just to get tickets to our concerts, but in the end… Ah, fuck it. You don’t wanna hear it.”   
V put his beer down and looked into his eyes, a look of understanding shining in those big blues. “I’ve seen his memories. I know what he did, all the shit he pulled.”   
Kerry looked away, nodding. Letting the moment lie for a bit, before standing. “Gotta take a piss, be right back.” 

When he came back, V was standing by the wall were all of his gold records hung. Kerry hadn’t even thought about them, inviting him over to the studio. It had just come naturally to him, instead of asking him to come over to his place, which felt way too intimate and too assuming since they’d only known each other for a few weeks, and hardly that, even, considering half the time he met V, it was Johnny who possessed his body.   
Kerry walked over to him, even though he felt slightly embarrassed. Now it felt like he was showing off by asking him to come here. But whatever he did, it would feel like showing off, so maybe it didn’t matter. If V didn’t like it, he wouldn’t have shown up. 

“Hey,” V said, smiling a small smile as Kerry walked up to him. V stood a few inches taller than he did, but it wasn’t all too noticeable. “I remember this album. My good for nothin’ dad had it. Used to listen to it all the time when I was a kid and he was in a good mood. Chippin’ in was my favorite …Your version.”   
Kerry hummed, tracing the golden metal with his finger as he inclined his head, looking at V.   
“Do you have a real name, V? Or is it just that, Vee?”   
This time V gave him an honest, open smile. It lasted for a second or two, but it lit Kerry’s heart in the miniscule moment it lasted, as if a bullet had ricocheted off onto him for a millisecond. “Vincent,” he said and Kerry nodded. “Though I prefer V. Vincent sounds so…” he shrugged, “I don’t like it.”   
“V it is, then.” Kerry leaned against the wall, watching the kid, no - man, before him. “This was great V, better than I’ve had in a long fucking time to be honest.”   
“Yeah,” V said, “Let’s do it again some time soon, yeah?”   
Kerry smiled, maybe too brightly, but he really didn’t give a shit.


	5. V - Like a supreme

Johnny was fucking insufferable the days leading up to the gig, going on and on about this and that, pacing more than usual all over the apartment. Even Nibbles seemed to notice something was awry as Johnny went on and on. One second he was chatting V’s ears off about the gig itself, another he was yelling about Arasaka and the fucking chip. It was a curse in itself that earplugs didn’t work against Johnny and V was getting close to just ripping the fucking thing out of his head himself if Johnny didn’t just shut the fuck up, damned the consequences.  
When the day of the gig finally came, V drew a sigh of relief as he allowed Johnny to guide everything he did, even the clothes he was going to wear. Apparently, Johnny had a strict no underwear-policy on stage; which seemed to explain a few awkward situations waking up from having Johnny take over. Seems the guy just preferred going commando no matter what. The thought made V wince, but he supposed everyone was different. 

Arriving at the club, V was still himself for a good while as he stood talking to Nance and Denny.  
Denny had cooled down after the whole Henry-fuck fest in her backyard and V had to admit he liked her. She was a stuck-up bitch, though not near as bad as Rogue, but she was no Nance, who was almost too laid back whilst still managing to be a control freak. 

Kerry finally arrived with the base player they had been able to borrow from another band. It was Drausin, from Cutthroat and he was a huge choom, tall and muscled, and he looked even larger next to Kerry who was not only pretty average in height, but also kinda skinny.  
Meeting Drausin during their jamming sessions in preparing for the gig, V had been nervous as shit before Johnny took over, though now it seemed as if Drausin was the one going under from nerves, as if the reality of playing live with the remaining members of Samurai had finally sunk into his head. Drausin greeted V and then stood fidgeting, almost jumping on his feet before it was time to soundcheck.  
“Chill choom,” Kerry spoke, laughing quietly as he gestured for Drausin to calm down a bit. “And get that fucking shakin’ under control man.” Under his breath, V heard Kerry admitting to his own shaking becoming worse. 

When they were done soundchecking, Johnny prompted V to go to the bar and have a drink. V did just that, settling his nerves. Kerry was soon by his side, downing three shots of tequila quickly.  
“Damn, that’s better…” Kerry winked at V before smacking his hand over the countertop. “It’s time.”  
“Yeah.” V nodded as he saw Johnny appear again beside him, nodding towards the restrooms.  
V stood and walked into a small booth, sighing before he chucked one of the too big, disgusting pills he’d gotten from Misty and soon everything went black. 

When he came back to himself, it was to an overly excited Kerry sitting with him at the bar, chatting away with the bartender. When V’s throat constricted, making him cough uncontrollably, almost heaving his lungs out, Kerry turned to look at him, concern written all over his face for a moment, before a soft smile played over his face. “V?”  
“Yeah, ‘m back.” Coughing again, V could taste blood and he held his hand over his mouth, worried he’d spit blood all over a victorious rock’n’roll legend. The bartender eyed him suspiciously for a moment before turning towards another customer.  
“Ya did good, kid.” Kerry said, cocking his head. “Hey, I’ve got something for you.” Waving his hand, some dude, an assistant of some sort, came over with a bag. From it, Kerry pulled out a gun and V almost recoiled at first, before he laughed quietly, recognizing it from Kerry’s house and Johnny’s explanation of his bruised face when they’d left.  
“You hit me in the face with that piece.” V said with a smile and Kerry laughed, meeting his eyes. Kerry had beautiful eyes, pale green and sad, but they glinted when he smiled, as if lighting up his whole face with just one motion.  
“I did,” he said, looking a bit abashed before he slid the gun over the counter to V. “Take it, I want ya to have it. It’s a replica of Johnny’s.” 

V took the gun, weighed it in his hand. It was heavy, but had a good grip. It was a beauty, and he could hear Johnny humming with satisfaction in the back of his mind. V’s apartment was beginning to fill up with all kinds of merch associated to Johnny by this point, not that he really minded, but this was different. Not just that it was from Kerry, or that it was a replica of Johnny’s gun; it was a fine piece of iron, well made and from the looks of it, handcrafted, which meant it was fucking expensive.  
“You sure?”  
“Yeah.” V couldn’t stop looking into Kerry’s eyes. It was becoming embarrassing and he tried to look at the gun instead, or the damn bartender or whatever.  
“Thanks Ker.”  
“You’re a good kid, V.” Kerry put his hand on his shoulder and patted him before he rose from the stool. “See ya around, yeah? Been thinking about some biz I might need your help with.”  
“Preem.” V said, instantly curious what kind of biz someone like Kerry would need _him_ for. 

_”It was amazing, you should’a seen it. I gotta say, you really missed out with this one. People flooded in to that little club. Man, I’ve missed doing that. And yeah, you saw Kerry after, haven’t seen him that happy since the 2020’s. Choom really needed that boost.”_  
Johnny couldn’t shut up about the gig, and yeah, V was a bit down about not being able to experience it better. He’d seen pieces of it from Johnny’s view after, in his memories, but it was from Johnny’s perspective. V would have wanted to see more of the others, of the people there listening.  
In either case, it had been worth giving up his body for, way more worth it than when Johnny had tried to fuck Rogue on their date. Sleeping with women was something V had tried, and failed at. The thought made his skin crawl and the woman being Rogue didn’t make it any better. Sure, she was a fine looking woman for her age, but still; he couldn’t stop the shiver of disgust from the thought. He supposed he was lucky he wasn’t really conscious when Johnny took over, else he would’ve puked. 

After the gig was done and Johnny had been able to ramble on about it for long enough, things settled down and V could go back to his hunt on finding a solution for his situation, as well as finishing some other gigs he’d fallen behind on …or put off for the time being. Getting to Arasaka was no easy thing, and Johnny’s suggestion about nuking them again was tempting, but would do little in helping them with what was V’s main priority. 

Takemura, the man who had set out till kill him at first (him, Johnny and a lot fucking more could stand on que at one point for the same thing) kept calling him. He had his own beef with Arasaka and the current leadership, but what his beef had to do with V’s, he didn’t know and so he wasn’t sure he wanted to get more mixed up with the Japanese former bodyguard. Sure, he’d saved his life, scanned him and seen what V had seen in the Penthouse of the Konpeki; though it still didn’t mean V trusted him. His missions seemed to V to be self-serving and V was already used enough by others to actually give a damn in just helping others he felt nothing for. 

Instead, V hung out with Judy who was still mourning Evelyn. They’d visited her grave, standing inside the huge columbarium in silence and just letting it be. Judy was heartbroken and V just felt bad about the whole thing. Sure, Evelyn had lied and got him into this fucking mess in the first place, but her suicide fucked up Judy, and V liked her. Judy gave off a tough vibe on the outside, but inside was an insecure and frightened girl, not all that unlike V himself. They were close in age, both had done some fucked up shit, came from a fucked up childhood, but they hung in there. As far as friends came after Jackie’s death, Judy was the closest thing V had at the moment. 

“Bum a smoke?” Judy asked as they sat on the rooftop of her apartment building a few hours later, staring off into the distance, beyond the high commercial screamsheets blasting off into space from the city center.  
V handed his cigarette case over to her, the one which had been Evelyn’s, the one Judy wanted him to keep. V didn’t really care about the case, it would have been better if she had taken it back. Now he couldn’t get rid of it without feeling bad. And Judy kept bumming smokes off of him. 

“Anything new on your side of town?” Judy asked as she blew smoke from between her lips.  
“Nah, not really.” V said, lighting a smoke for himself. “Had the gig with Samurai. Went well, I suppose.”  
“He like it?”  
“Johnny? Yeah. He was ecstatic.”  
_”C’mon, you don’t have to exaggerate.”_ Johnny spoke from the corner.  
“The others, do they know?” Judy asked, frowning. “About _him_?”  
“Just Kerry.” V answered, rolling the cigarette between his fingers. “Better not to tell everyone about it. Too fucked up for most people. Nance and Denny just thought I was some great fan with a talent, I guess. Didn’t ask to many questions. Ker vouched for me.”  
Judy laughed and leaned back, smiling at V, giving him a pointed look. “At least you’re better looking than Silverhand.”  
_”Smaller dick, though.”_ Johnny spoke from the railing, grabbing his crotch. V flipped him off in his head.  
“Not a major achievement that, Jude.” V shook his head. “Eh, anyway. I better get going. Got stuff to do, people to find.”  
“Whatever you say V. Take care of yourself.”  
“You too. See ya around.” 

There was a parade in Japantown that Takemura wanted his help with. A parade arranged by Arasaka and the guest of honor was the daughter of the new late emperor. Since V had been trying to avoid him… just a little, Takemura had gone to Makako himself, asking for V and when the fixer called him, he was more or less forced to give in. You didn’t say no to that beast of a woman lightly. If he understood her right, she had no idea what Takemura actually planned and it was probably for the best. It was some sketchy shit that he had cooked up by himself and V didn’t feel comfortable at all as he stood in the market above Japantown looking out over balconies and passways between the megabuildings. Takemura wanted him to take out fucking snipers, climbing the buildings and somehow avoid detection by fucking Corpo soldiers, while all Takemura had to do was jump on a goddamned float.  
Didn’t seem fair at all; and how this would help him, he had no idea. Takemura promised him the emperor’s daughter would be able to help V and Johnny, but Johnny didn’t like this shit one bit and neither did V. Johnny constantly made his dislike known for Takemura.  
When Kerry called him in the middle of his and Takemura’s conversation, V couldn’t help but to draw a sigh of relief at excusing himself for a moment. 

“Hey, you left early! What gives?”  
V chuckled, shaking his head, “If I remember right, _you’re_ the one who left early.”  
“Uh, shit - yeah might be. Whatever! Anyway, what’s up? I got this thing I need you to help me with. You up for it? Tonight?”  
Looking around, V watched the sour face of Takemura for a second or two before he turned around and answered Kerry. “Fuck yes. Get me the fuck away from this shit.”  
“Preem! Where are you?”  
“Japantown.”  
“I’ll pick you up. Jig Jig street okay?”  
“Yeah. I’ll wait for you there.”  
“Cool. See ya soon.”  
“See ya.” 

Back with Takemura, V nodded politely and listened to the man speak, but was able to excuse himself after a little while and headed down towards Jig Jig street, where he sat down on the wayside and waited. Kerry showed up half an hour later in a shitty little car that would have looked better in the scrapyard than being driven by Kerry Eurodyne.  
“This your new ride?” V asked, teasingly, and Kerry laughed.  
“Fuck you choomba, just borrowed it.”  
“Right,” V sat down in the passenger seat and Kerry drove off, blasting chrome rock from the old holo player in the car. “Where’re we goin’?”  
“Got something big planned, V. You’ll see. Just follow my lead.” Kerry spoke as he drove.  
_”We’ll most likely end up in a ditch with Ker driving.”_ Johnny said from the backseat, _”Hold on. That’s my tip.”_  
_”What the hell is he up to? Seems jumpy.”_  
Johnny just shrugged and V turned back to Kerry who sat driving, humming along with the music as he swayed from one file to the other, seeming to favor driving in the middle of the road instead of on the right side. The loud music drowned out the angry car horns from fellow drivers as Kerry seemed completely unaware of his uselessness behind the wheel. V held on to the handle of the door just to be sure. It was obvious Johnny was right about Kerry’s driving. 

“These fucking Japanese sluts, tryin’ta use my shit. I’ll fucking show them that nobody messes with Kerry Eurodyne.”  
V frowned, looking at Kerry. “What’s this about Kerry?”  
“Fucking girlband, J-pop shit is using my fucking song, and I don’t want it. They reached out to my manager but I said no. Said fucking _no_!” Kerry gripped the wheels hard, his foot heavy on the gas and V held on a bit tighter. “But you know how it is. Sent me some expensive whiskey and shit, thinking I’d give in. Fuck them! Little sluts. We’re gonna show them, hijacking their equipment. Let’s see how they manage without it, ha!” 

_”Wow, look at him. Looks like our dear Kerry’s finally doing something real, standing up for himself.”_ Johnny said from the backseat. _”Used to be he sent his lawyers in, not wanting to get his hands dirtied. Seems thing’s are a’changin’.”_  
_”He’s gone whack.”_ V answered Johnny in his head. _”The hell’s he on about?”_  
_”How the fuck should I know?.”_

“Hijacking their equipment? How? Whaddya gonna do Kerry?”  
“Blow it up.” Kerry said with a deep tone to his voice, turning quickly to V with a smile, his eyes shining with mischievousness. “You’ll see, honey. We’ll fucking nuke their shit. It’ll scare the shit out of those little shits.” 

V just raised his eyebrows, nodded and sat back. Maybe this was what Kerry needed. From what he’d learned from Johnny, Kerry had always felt as if he lived in Johnny’s shadow, having to do something more, something different from him. The fact that Johnny - just between V and him, thought Kerry had completely sold out to the Corpos, kind of proved it. V could easily see it. Kerry wanted to prove himself, not only to Johnny, but to himself, perhaps most of all. To V, helping out Kerry just became even better with the thought of blowing some shit up. All for shits and giggles; and Kerry’s self-confidence, of course. 

After driving for half an hour, they stopped just to the side of the highway, just before it continued towards the industrial parts of Watson. Kerry sat fidgeting with his phone for a bit, obviously checking out a GPS he had tracking the transport before he jumped out, practically skipping as he walked over to the trunk of the little rusty car, opening it. Following, V found two guns and some fucking _frags_.  
“Where the _fuck_ did you get this shit, Ker?” V looked up at him from leaning over the trunk. “This ain’t just some overpowered fireworks or a little piece of dough. This is some real shit.”  
“Hah,” Kerry grabbed his shoulder, leaning into him, waaay too close for V not to stir. V could feel his warm skin and smell his perfume. Musky, with something light almost flowery mixed with cigarette smoke. “Where do you get anything? Fans!”  
“You’re fucking unbelievable.” V chuckled and picked up one of the guns as well as two grenades. Kerry took the other gun and something heavy and folded. V didn’t know what it was.  
“I’m the real deal.” Kerry winked at him, as he checked the clip of his gun before walking out into the road. “C’mon V… it’s showtime.” 

The other thing Kerry carried was a fucking stinger. Where ever he’d gotten it, V didn’t know and he sure as hell didn’t care either. They laid it out on the road and then ran back, hiding behind their car as they waited for the equipment transport to arrive. Kerry was squatting so close to him, he had to hold himself back from touching him. Unconsciously, he leaned closer to Kerry. If he noticed, he didn’t show and before V could embarrass himself further, Kerry hissed “There they are, c’mon!” 

Fortunately, the roads were pretty empty out here and so they didn’t puncture some innocent folk’s car, and as the van slid to the side, all four tires blown, Kerry and V attacked, pulling their guns on the driver and his companion.  
“Get outta the van, hands in the air! And don’t try nothin’ stupid!” Kerry yelled.  
“ _Do it_!” V growled, cocking his gun towards the passenger. 

The two men scrambled out of the van and laid down on the ground, scared shitless and crying out for mercy, their hands above their heads. Kerry kept an eye on them whilst V ran to the back and opened the van. “Jackpot Ker!” He said, laughing.  
They chased off the two now shaking gonks before Kerry asked for one of the grenades. “Better back up a bit, huh?” He said.  
V smiled, looking at Kerry before following him. “Time for fireworks?”  
“Hell yeah!” Kerry nodded, licking his lips. 

They both threw the grenades into the van and then ran further off, watching it blow into a million pieces, equipment and all. Kerry shouted and laughed. It was exhilarating, freeing, watching equipment for thousands of eddies just burn. There was a beauty in it that V hadn’t realized before. Sure, he’d blown up some shit in his days. Cars, little side shops, even a bar or two; for extortion - gigs for fixers, just biz. But this; sure, Kerry called it biz, but it felt like something else to V. He couldn’t explain it as he watched it. It was just beautiful, disburdening.  
Turning to Kerry, he was beautiful in his excitement, his pale green eyes shining in the darkness of the late evening as he watched the mayhem with struck fascination. Johnny stood off to the side smiling, shaking his head.  
V didn’t know what got to him in that moment, but he took the few steps remaining between him and Kerry, his hands grabbing Kerry’s cheeks, and he kissed him. 


	6. Kerry - Rebel yell

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A shorter update with Kerry, until we catch up with V again.
> 
> I recommend listening to this classic whilst reading this chapter: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VdphvuyaV_I - Billy Idol - Rebel yell

It took him off guard. V kissing him. Sure, he’d seen a few signs, but it wasn’t fucking easy to tell right off the bat like that. V could just be curious, could be fascinated but straight and not interested in that way. Kerry knew he himself was interested, very much so, and his stomach jumped as V’s lips touched his and his tongue pushed against Kerry’s mouth. Kerry opened the kiss, deepening it as his hands were drawn to V’s back, clenching into his patched vest as V’s hands raked through Kerry’s hair, nails scraping into his skull. It was so fucking intense, Kerry wasn’t even sure what he was doing, only that he wanted more, wanted to deepen everything. In that moment, the burning van was forgotten, the neon lights shining from the city center behind them didn’t fucking exist - there was nothing; only the two of them. An old damned rocker and a kid, standing in the middle of a fucking highway having just blown a goddamned van to pieces, making out. He could’ve been high off his ass, and it wouldn’t have felt any different. It was just good, and most of all, _right_. 

V parted from him when sirens could be heard in the distance and the look in V’s eyes at that moment, as he watched Kerry, his thin lips swollen from kisses, Kerry could fucking kill for it.  
“Gotta get out of here Ker.” V said, and Kerry just felt struck, molded into place. “Hey, Kerry!”  
That got him going, with a smile, he bolted towards the car, V on his heels. “You drive!” He shouted at V, easily jumping into the passenger seat as V jumped into the driver’s seat, fumbling with the keys for a moment before the old piece of junk started up. 

V was a good driver, steady hands when pushing the car to its limits, rushing towards the industrial parts of Watson, then turning south again. When they had arrived in Kabuki, V stopped the car, just laughing quietly and Kerry watched him in silence with a smile on his lips. He wanted to reach out, touch him, but was just so fucking afraid V’d get the wrong idea, like he just wanted to screw him and move on. He didn’t. He liked V, genuinely _liked_ him.  
He didn’t have to worry. V reached out, taking the initiative again, grabbing his hand, stroking his finger against Kerry’s palm. Kerry let him, turning his palm up and cocking his head, watching V as he watched him back. 

“That was some fucking thing, wasn’t it?” Kerry said, smiling.  
“Yeah,” V nodded. “I need a drink. But damn that felt good.”  
“Those bitches better get the message.”  
“Mm, if they don’t, we’ll come up with something else, fuckin’ nuke ‘em or somethin’.”  
Kerry smiled and tightened his hold on V’s hand, reaching out with his free hand and touching V’s cheek. V leaned in and they kissed again, deeper this time from the start, tongues swirling, touching, tasing. Fuck, he wanted him. This time, he could feel how hard he became from just feeling V’s lips on his, his tongue against his own, lips moving, breaths mixing. He wanted to feel him inside, wanted to be inside him, this perfect and fucked up kid, just giving himself to Kerry.  
“Fuck,” V breathed as they parted, “Fuck the drink, I live close by. Got booze at home, you in?”  
“Fuck yeah.” Kerry breathed, letting his hand wander over V’s chest, down to his crotch. He was hard, Kerry could feel it through his pants and as he squeezed, V moaned beautifully. 

V lived in a shitty apartment in a megabuilding just beside the NCPD HQ. It was tiny, but clean enough and Kerry couldn’t see any trace of bugs or any other infestation that was otherwise common in these buildings. Not that he watched out for it with any ardor. His eyes were on V, and V only. The kid seemed a bit off his game as they arrived, offering him a drink and fumbling with random shit. Kerry didn’t care. This, he was used to. This, he was good at.  
Grabbing V and pushing him towards the bed in the corner, shutting him up with kisses along the way, Kerry pushed him back so he fell into the bed. Kerry was soon straddling him, kissing his way down V’s neck, raking his fingers through his blonde strands. V’s hands were quick and before Kerry even noticed, they were pulling at his clothes, reaching for his belt and pants. Another moment and V had Kerry on his back, V’s lips running down his chest and stomach, his face buried against his hard cock.  
“Damn,” Kerry sighed, leaning back on his elbows as he watched V blow him. “You’re fuckin’ gorgeous.”  
V fondled his balls, looking up at him as he stroked him with his other hand, smiling mischievously.  
“Keep this going, an’ Imma come, V.” Kerry’s voice was strained as V kept working him, his head bobbing up and down as he did.  
“Then I’ll fuck you until you come again, Ker.” V said, jerking him faster before closing his lips around him again. Kerry was helpless against it and fell back against the sheets, groaning as his fingers dug into V’s hair. 

Completely fucked and fulfilled, twice over, Kerry lay smoking beside a softly snoring V. He hadn’t even noticed the kid had a cat. A hairless grey creature sitting on the couch, watching in silence before it rose, stretched and hopped down, walking away towards the bathroom.  
He hadn’t been fucked liked this in a long while. Usually it was fast, easy - no strings attached, no shit in between. Just a good lay. This was different. Kerry was old enough to see it for what it was. He’d been through it before, though it was a long time since it’d felt this intense, just so completely right. It scared him. It was scary becoming attached, to allow oneself to feel, to be dependent on someone. It’s one thing having something casual that you could just walk away from, do whatever the fuck you pleased in the meantime, but he couldn’t do that this time. Just the thought of it felt wrong, somehow. All or nothin’, and it would probably scare the kid shitless and V’d run. He’d do well to run. Kerry was messed up, a bad influence, trash best left behind in a dumpster somewhere far off. 

V came to when Kerry stubbed out his smoke, stretching his long pale body like a graceful cat beside him. Without a word, he reached for Kerry, pulling him close and pushing against Kerry, sticky skin touching, glistening in the neon lights shining in from the buzzling city just beyond the thin walls surrounding them. All Kerry could focus on then was V’s face. Sharp features, the shadow of a stubble and fair skin, large blue eyes, like depths of fucking unpolluted oceans he’d only seen on the coast of Norway years ago. Icy cliffs of stone, a steep fall into the North Sea, and that’s it. You cannot help but to fall, and Kerry fucking fell, looking into those eyes of his.  
“C’mon, let’s sleep. You wore me out.” V smiled, trailing kisses along Kerry’s neck as long arms wrapped around his back. Kerry drew as close as was physically possible, leaning his head against V’s, closing his eyes to the lights all around them. 

Escaping V’s apartment the next morning without being recognized was a trial in itself. Kerry pulled up his hoodie over his head and covered his eyes with sunglasses. He knew it did little as he was too recognizable whatever he did. His face was plastered on screamsheets all over NC and he’d have to cover himself up completely unless someone noticed who he was. Fifty years ago it would have been flashes notifying him of paparazzi’s, these days it was harder to see them.  
Getting into V’s car, as they had abandoned his ‘borrowed’ car, Kerry sank into his seat as V left the parking garage.


	7. V - Drenched in blood

It was when riding an elevator in the city center that V first saw it. Photos, of him, videos. With Kerry.   
It was taken inside the megabuilding he lived in and you could hardly tell the choom beside him was Kerry, unless you knew it was actually him. Apparently, it didn’t matter, as the headlines were screaming at him, ‘Kerry Eurodyne spotted in Watson district with unknown man! Learn more about Night City’s most infamous rocker and his love life tonight at 8’. 

V almost bolted from the elevator as it was still going, choking on the fact that his face was plastered on screamsheets all over the city, on the fucking news - everywhere. Suddenly, it felt as if the whole city was staring at him. It wasn’t true, of course, but V’s paranoid side took over as he pulled his hoodie up over his head and hunched his shoulders, slinking inside a café and finding a lone dark spot, only ordering a cup of coffee. 

_”You had to know this would happen.”_ Johnny sat down in the other corner, his leg resting on the table before him. _”Or are you really that blind? Sure, no one would have batted an eye fifty years ago, but now? Kerry’s not a nobody. Being seen with him would doubtless bring you to attention.”_  
V sipped his coffee, ignoring Johnny as he fumbled with his phone, considering calling Kerry - or just ignoring it all together. Tomorrow the news would be caught up in something different, something new. And perhaps Kerry wasn’t all that bothered with it to begin with, publicity stunts were his deal, after all. 

Finishing his coffee and deciding to completely ignoring Johnny, V made his way towards Heywood. He had promised Mama Welles to drop by for a late lunch and he’d delayed it so many times, he just couldn’t say no again.   
And, it was nice being with her. V could hardly remember his own mom anymore, only that he looked like her. He’d gotten his far skin, blonde hair and blue eyes from her.   
She’d fallen in love with his shithead of a dad when she’d worked as an au pair in Night City and then never left, coming there from Sweden. V had never been over there, as scratch had always been an issue for as long as he knew, but he remembered his mom’s stories about the old country. The stories about the forests, the nature that was still fairly untouched before she left, before the great immigration crisis from Central Europe turned Sweden into an isolationist country with shut down boarders. 

V still knew some of the language, remembered some of the customs his mother had kept, but there was little left now. Just as his memory of how she actually looked was dimming more and more with every year. He’d forgotten her voice, but he could still see her smile - mainly because every time he saw himself smile, he saw his mother. His baby sister had looked more like their dad, sandy-colored hair and green eyes, but similar enough to V that it was easy to see they were siblings. He remembered even less of his baby sister. It was tragic and the thought made V close his eyes and shake his head as he tried to focus on what Mama Welles was saying. 

After he’d stuffed himself with her tamales and pozoles, he hugged her before leaving, getting back on Jackie’s arch and heading towards Japantown where he had an errand to run for Wakako. 

His phone vibrated as he parked his bike and V quickly got it out of his pocket, answering. It was Rogue.   
“You and Kerry, eh?” Rogue’s voice was teasing and V didn’t like it at all. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the static of Johnny appearing.   
“Fuck, not you too.”   
“What? Johnny don’t like it, does he?” Rogue laughed and V should hear her exhale smoke. He fished up a smoke from his case and lit it, drawing in a deep breath.   
“Johnny can fuck off when it comes to that. Not his business.” V’s voice was low, deep and rasping as the smoke escaped his lungs as he spoke.   
“Hah! So, you’re his new lover?”  
“ _Not_ your business.”   
“Oooh, I see.” Rogue laughed and V could see her before him, biting her lower lip as she made herself comfortable for more gossip. “Do tell… How’s NC’s most famous in the sack?”   
V sighed loudly, rolling his eyes. “What is it that you want exactly, Rogue?”   
_”She’s a fucking gossip, but she already knows more than even you do V, no point in trying to keep it from her. She’s just teasing you.”_  
 _”No shit.”_  
“Sensitive, are we?” Rogue sounded mischievous, but then quickly cleared her throat again, “Got a job for ya, interested?”   
“What’s it about?” 

Rogue was a fair fixer, even though you had to be careful not to allow her to use you too much. It was easy to see that this chick hadn’t been wise enough to understand that. V wouldn’t have been either, if it weren’t for Johnny helping him out the first time he’d met Rogue. Now, Johnny was standing just behind Panam, his head cocked as he stared at her ass, not so inconspicuously grabbing his crotch.   
_”Damn.”_  
 _”Focus, Johnny.”_

“So, what? You’re telling me you know where my ride and my merch is, but you won’t fuckin’ tell me until I do what you - meaning Rogue - says?” Panam spat, shoving the engine hood down, making the entire car shake. “Fuck that, I ain’t her puppet.”   
V crossed his arms over his chest, “Ya kinda are though.”   
“You can go to hell. I’m not doing it!”   
“Hey, listen,” V held up a hand, “I know it’s not ideal, but this shit’s gotta get done, yeah? And Rogue won’t let it go. Help me with this, and I’ll help you. It’s not that big of a deal, really.”   
“And how’re you gonna help me? Maybe you won’t even tell me where my shit is, maybe you’re just playing me like she is. You’re her goon.”   
“That’s fuckin’ unfair.” V protested, but understood her reasoning, even though her stubbornness was infuriating. “Look, I promise, you help me hijack this truck and I’ll fucking come with you to get your ride. You can hold a gun to my head if ya want to.”   
Panam watched him for a moment, eyes narrowed. Then she walked over to the driver’s seat, getting into her rust bucket of a car, looking like a petulant child as she gestured for V to get in too.   
“Wasn’t too hard, was it?” V said as he sat down, leaning back with his legs spread wide, picking up his phone from his pocket.   
“Just shut up.” 

**Kerry Eurodyne** : _Hey, call me. Shit’s goin’ down, hard._

The fuck? V thought as he read Kerry’s message. He was usually pretty facile when texting, asking shallow questions or just checking up on V, always adding a ton of smiley to his messages. This was different and V frowned, looking at the text. Pressing the call button, he ignored Panam’s sour face and brought the phone to his ear. 

“Hey V.”   
“Hey Ker, got your text. What’s up?”   
Apparently, fragging the truck had done next to nothing and Kerry was off his head, ranting about Japanese sluts and how dead rock was, how fucked up this Corpo-fucking-world had become and how he was gonna ‘fuckin’ show those bitches he was a man of his word’. V just hoped Panam didn’t hear any of it.   
“Whaddya wanna do?” V asked him, interrupting his rant.   
“Eh, fuck. I don’t know.” Kerry sounded almost forlorn and V didn’t like it, not at all. “I’m just so fucking tired of this bullshit. Fuck! Doesn’t help that I bring the label into it, their lawyers won’t do shit.”  
“So we go at ‘em.” V said, his voice calm. “Personally.”   
“Hm,” Kerry quieted for a moment, “Yeah, why the fuck not? Fuck it, let’s do it! They have a concert here soon, I think. Lemme check it out, and we’ll pay them a visit. Just you an’ me.”   
“Heh, you sure?”   
“Damn straight I’m sure. Those little sluts won’t know what hit them.”   
“Whatever you say, choom. I’m in.” V licked his lips, already longing for Kerry but he decided not to say anything. With Panam beside him, he didn’t want to show her any kind of weakness, whatever it was; Kerry or otherwise.   
“Choom?” Kerry laughed, “Right.”   
V closed his eyes, sighing, “Didn’t mean it like that. I’m kinda indisposed… Right now.”   
“I get it… Choom. See ya.” Kerry hung up and V cursed. 

_”Great going there V,”_ Johnny sat in the backseat, rolling a cigarette between his fingers, _”Pissed off Kerry, pissed off this nice, thick broad, and well on your way to piss off Rogue with making promises you can’t keep.”_   
_”And whaddya think I should do, huh? She wouldn’t help me unless I gave her something, and Kerry - argh, I dunno.”_   
_”Fuck Kerry for now, he’ll come around. Focus on what’s important. Hijacking this load, it’ll get you closer to Arasaka and you need this broad on your side. I’m not just saying it because she’s a fine piece of ass, even though she is, but_ we _fucking need her.”_   
_”I know._  
 _”So you know what to do.”_   
V did. He did know what to do, and that was to go along with what Panam wanted, fuck the consequences for now. He could think about them later. 

As Panam steered the car south towards Pacifica, V leaned his head against the window, looking at the rugged city landscape in this part of town. It was awful, a slum if anything and way worse than Watson or Heywood. He’d been shocked the first time he came here to contact the Voodoo Boys. How they had run down their district and blaming it all on the Corpos. Sure, the corporations had certainly done their part - but that wasn’t the whole story.   
But it didn’t matter. So long as they got what the truck was carrying, he’d be one step closer. This was his chance and unless he managed to pull through, he might as well put a fucking gun to his head right now. 

V and Panam spent several hours in her car keeping watch for the truck. V had its GPS coordinates on his phone, a present from Rogue, and it was slowly coming closer and closer. 

“Gonna be here in 5.” He said, reaching for his control. “You sure this’ll do the trick?”   
“Positive.” Panam said, yawning where she sat, “Unless you’re so fucking slow you can’t even pull the trigger right.”   
V ignored that as Johnny chuckled in the backseat. 

When the truck showed up, V counted down slowly in his head, until it was just across the highway bridge, and he pressed the button. He was prepared for an explosion, and a pretty large one. He wasn’t prepared for the whole fucking truck to lift into a vertical position and topple over as asphalt flew all over the place.   
“Fuck!”   
“Could say that again!” Panam laughed as she bolted from the car, running towards the truck now laying upside-down, “C’mon!” 

V came after her, running with a gun in his hand and soon he and Panam both were trying their best bending the back doors of the truck open. Once they’d gotten it out of lock, they had to dig through the mess inside, but eventually V found what he was looking for. Data on hacking into Arasaka’s servers as well as access-cards, just what he needed and what Rogue had asked for. Johnny hummed happily about now being closer to access cyberspace and Alt, once and for all, and hopefully soon reach Mikoshi. 

As V was busy transferring the data he needed, Panam suddenly shouted for him to duck, but before he knew it, a swishing sound passed him and pain wracked through his leg, then his hip.   
“ _V_!” Panam screamed, guns going off and the peppering sound of automatic weapons coming from drones sounded in the air. “ _Fuck_ , V! C’mon, we gotta get out of Dodge!”   
“Arrh, fuck!” V janked at the chord connecting him to the portable server, trying his best to ignore the pain. “I’m fuckin’ hit.” He rasped, “Panam!” 

Hands grabbed him and for a second he froze, before he saw Panam’s dark eyes staring into his and her long, twisted hair hanging in his face as she dragged him away from the still burning truck. Bullets whistled beside them as he was dragged across the asphalt and finally stuffed into the car.   
“Gotta get me to Vic’s…” V tasted blood as he clasped his side, just above his hip and when he looked at his hand, it was drenched in blood.   
“ _Where_?” Panam hissed through her teeth as she pushed the gas through the floor of the car. “Send me his address, V!”   
Concentrating, V was able to access her car through the smart-link in his hand, transferring the address. Panam made a narrow turn before continuing to race through the streets. V could only beg they wouldn’t run into any cops on the way. After another few seconds, he dozed off. 

Waking up at Vic’s wasn’t exactly V’s favorite thing in the world. He couldn’t help but to associate it with the first time he’d woken up in this place without going in for implants; when Jackie was gone and a terrorist tried to flatline him every few seconds.   
For a moment V thought he was back to it again and unconsciously he fought against it, his arms knocking over several of Vic’s stuff.   
“Easy,” Vic spoke, clamping his hands around V’s arms. “You’re alright. You’re alright.”   
“The fuck happened?”   
“Dark-haired chick brought you here,” Vic said. “She had to run, but told me to tell you to call her as soon as you were up and walking again. 

Right… Panam. The truck. Scanning his memory, V found what he’d been able to gather from the servers in the truck, and he exhaled, relaxing in knowing he’d at least got what he was after.   
V nodded, “Yeah, nice of her to bring me to ya… How much do I owe you this time, Vic?”   
Vic shrugged, tapping on his tablet, searching through V’s system. “Nothing for now, but you could tell me who’s gonna pick you up. Won’t be able to walk for a couple of days.” 

_Fuck_. He couldn’t have Misty take care of him again, wouldn’t be right. Mama Welles would have a heart attack getting this on her plate and Judy, no… She was still dealing with Evelyn’s death. Rogue wouldn’t give two shits and would rather have him limp home before she would extend a hand to play cab for him. He could call Delamain, but the sentient AI made him shudder and he was in many ways truly the last… eh, person? or whatever he really was, V wanted to call. That basically left Kerry. Well, why the fuck not? He’d helped Kerry out. 

“V, hey.. Sorry about befor-“  
“Kerry, I need ya.” V glanced at Vic, then turned away, as if that would provide him with more privacy. Johnny stood in the corner with his arms crossed over his chest, rolling his eyes.   
“What’s up? Something happen?”   
“Could say that. Been shot, can’t really walk long stretches for a while. Could you come pick me up?”   
“Send me the address, I’m on my way.” 

Kerry stumbled into Vic’s little clinic half an hour later with a wide-eyed Misty following him, and V groaned. Vic almost dropped his tools as the Rockerboy dived towards the chair V laid in, bandaged and beat up. Kerry’s hands landed on V’s cheeks as his worried eyes raked over V’s body. It was obvious Kerry wasn’t sober, but at least he was on his feet. 

“The fuck happened? This something to do with Joh-“   
“ _Yes_ ,” V cut him off before he could say anymore and Kerry nodded, before turning to the still stunned ripperdoc and Misty.   
“Hey, eh… I’ll get this choom home. What’s his status?”  
“Uh…” Vic grunted, before coming back to himself, “Bullet wounds, will heal within days.”   
“I’m taking you back to my place.” Kerry said, looking at V, “Got one of NC’s best doc’s as a neighbor, in case something gets worse.”   
“I’m not dying!” V said, narrowing his eyes, and then realized what he’d said, correcting himself, he added, “From the bullets, anyway…”   
“Kerry _fucking_ Eurodyne,” Misty breathed from her corner, her hands hovering above her mouth, “I’m dreaming, aren’t I?”   
“C’mon V, we’re getting outta ‘ere.” Kerry said, grabbing V’s arm.   
“Hey, we gotta go get Nibbles.”   
“Huh?” Kerry looked at him as if he was an idiot.   
“My cat.”   
“Right, yeah. We’ll get it.”  
“Her.”   
“Whatever, c’mon.” 

Vic and Misty waved them off still looking a bit shell-shocked, as Johnny shook his head, sighing before he fucked off.   
Being driven across the city in Kerry’s luxury car was right then and there the best thing V had ever done. And he never wanted it to end. When Kerry sent someone for Nibbles, and V finally watched as she was released into Kerry’s large villa, he could close his eyes and just rest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *No, it wasn’t Panam who helped him get Anders Hellman, Rogue did that in other, unnamed ways.


	8. Kerry - Sell your body

Hey boy, you wanna get ahead, you gotta give some head. Might end up dead instead.   
Hey boy, but you can make it right, so fix your hair alright and welcome to the night.  
 _\- Turbonegro ‘Sell your body (to the night)’_

Waking up beside V in his villa felt much more comfortable than in V’s apartment in Watson. Not that Kerry cared that the apartment was more austere than his in comparison almost vulgar house. But here, they were alone. No too close neighbors or paparazzi to harass them as soon as they stepped out. No need to hide or be careful about touching V like Kerry wanted to, every fucking second, every time he just looked at V, even in public. Here, even though his windows were panoramic and basically stretched all over the place, nobody saw anything. He could take V against every fucking window in his entire house and no one would even have a glimpse.

Fucking V was the last thing on his plate right now, however. The kid had been shot, and lay beat on the other side of Kerry, drooling into the silk pillow, his blonde hair mussed. As Kerry sat up, Nibbles jumped up on the bed, meowing as if asking for food or, whatever. Kerry had never had a pet, but cats were still common on the Philippines and he wasn’t unused to them. 

“C’mere, let’s find you some chow.” Kerry whispered as he got out of bed and picked up the cat, carrying her down to the kitchen.   
The hairless little animal curled up in his arms, its soft paws resting on his shoulder. “Whaddya like?” Kerry asked it as if it would answer. He ignored how ridiculous he felt. “Got… Synth-chicken, synth-beef, duck, whatever …You don’t care, do ya?” He chuckled, setting the cat down on the counter.   
He served her some food before he made himself some coffee and returned to the bed, leaning against the headboard with his tablet on his knee. Going through his mail as he usually did after waking up, there was a notification from Louise and Kerry sighed, opening it. 

‘They loved the bribes you sent, but it only took me reading out loud your latest e-mail for them to understand what a fucking hypocrite you are. Trying to buy your children, when you won’t even see them? You live in a goddamned mansion Kerry, and you can’t even bring your kids over. Fuck you.’

With a sigh he locked his tablet again, bringing the cup of coffee to his lips and staring out over the hills of North Oak. 

“What’re you sulkin’ about?” V spoke from his pillow and Kerry turned to look at him.   
“Nothin’”  
“Liar…”   
Kerry chuckled, shaking his head, “Never.”   
V smiled lazily, his hand traveling up Kerry’s thigh, teasing him. He grew hard instantly.   
“Whaddya doin, V?” Kerry put his cup away, curling down to V’s level, pressing his hard-on against V’s hip, leaning his head in the nook between V’s head and shoulder, leaving dry, open kisses against his skin.   
“Down with you.” V said, reaching down and touching himself, “Wanna come in your mouth.”   
Kerry smirked as he reached down, meeting V’s hand and taking over, before he slid down between V’s legs, wrapping his lips around his cock, doing what he knew he was fucking good at. 

V moaned so beautifully and Kerry was careful not to disturb his wounded leg or hip as he sucked him off, burying his face in V’s crotch, smelling the heady scent of musk and male.   
Reaching down, he took himself in hand as he bobbed his head faster while V’s moans became more and more needy. When he felt the first spurt of come shooting against the roof of his mouth, he lost it himself, groaning around his lover’s cock as he came.   
“ _Fuck_ ”, V reached for him, pulling him back up and kissing him deeply, ignoring the mixture of morning breath, coffee and cock Kerry must taste and smell off. V didn’t fucking taste any better, but it didn’t matter. Letting his tongue play with V’s for a while as he was pressed against his sweaty body was worth it. 

They stayed in bed for the rest of the day, eating their late breakfast there. When V went to take a shower, Kerry made some calls he needed to get through. Then they watched some idiotic reality series, not really caring. Around three o’clock they began drinking wine and around four they fucked again. Around six it was time for Nibbles to get some more food, and Kerry, Rockerboy turned rock star had now turned into caretaker and full-blown housewife. Not that he minded. It was easy enough since he didn’t actually have to do anything but fetch a few things every now and then.   
His cook turned up around the time the cat needed to be fed and fixed him and V some grub that they again ate in bed, both drunk off of their asses as the idiotic reality series now seemed to have turned into some sort of bizarre schadenfreude they both laid sprawled out in the bed watching. 

It took three days of V lazing around Kerry’s house until V grew antsy and annoyed by his constantly beeping phone. He only answered when it was that fucking Rogue, the bitch Johnny had hung around and fucked, and when he spoke with her, he sounded different - almost distressed and anxious, which Kerry didn’t fucking like. He had other calls, but it seemed as if he just ghosted them for the time being, but Kerry supposed Rogue isn’t one to be ignored. 

“Fuck it,” V said, looking ready to begin crawling the walls. “I gotta get out! You wanna do something? Go out, get a drink, whatever. Find some rough fucking dive and get shitfaced?”   
Kerry looked at him and laughed, “Whatever you wish, princess. Just say the word.”   
“Preem,” V got up, now walking without issue. “Fuck!”   
“What?” Kerry stood, walking over to him and circling his arms around the kid’s chest, raking his fingers against his skin.   
“Ain’t got any fucking clothes here…” V lamented, almost with a pout and Kerry sunk his teeth into his shoulder, pressing his half-hard dick against V’s ass.   
“We’ll go shopping on the way…” Kerry trailed kisses along V’s shoulder, reaching down and fondling him. V leaned against him, moaning.   
“You’re distracting me. I wanna get hammered.”   
“I’ll hammer you…”   
V smacked his hands away, turning around and sinking his hands into Kerry’s hair, kissing him. “I bet.” 

Lying sweaty beside each other, breathing heavily the both of them, V still insisted they go out. Kerry wasn’t one to argue getting drunk and creating some mayhem on the streets of NC. However, V’s wish of a scabby dive he could do without, so after a trip back to V’s apartment for some clothes, they set off for the city center. Kerry had a favorite skyline bar he wanted to take V to, and V didn’t complain as they sat down outside, looking out over the neon lights of NC.   
It was scenic, gorgeous, and being there with V by his side, Kerry realized he needed nothing else in his life. Fuck everything else. It was selfish and fucking horrible, he knew - but he didn’t care. 

V ordered and payed for champagne, which Kerry didn’t protest. He knew V was loaded. Not as loaded as he was, but he was hardly destitute, being one of the most sought after merc’s in the city.   
It was strange, but still good, sitting there like two all too wealthy punks in their studded and half thrashed black clothes, drinking champagne and watching the skyline. It was almost absurd, like some dark European comedy he would have adored as a teenager, just because it was considered ‘artsy’, but he wouldn’t have understood shit watching it. He didn’t understand shit now either, and still he enjoyed it. 

V was gorgeous when he smiled and even more so when he got completely wasted on thousand eddie champagne. Leaning over the railing from the terrace, V looked down on the busy streets below whilst Kerry stood smoking beside him.   
“Don’t puke.” Kerry said with a smirk, and V glared up at him.   
“I’m not twelve, you dick.”   
“If you say so…” Kerry said, leaning back against the railing, watching the smoke escape from between his lips and slowly evaporate up into the air. “Whaddya say, another place?”   
V looked up from the railing, smiling, “Yeah.” 

V drove them to the next place. Probably not a good idea, but they made it there without any major difficulties, much with the help of the autopilot, and either way, V was good behind the wheel, no matter his inebriation. 

This place was completely different from the first. They were way away from the city center, out in an industrial area and for a moment Kerry was afraid V had lost his head, bringing them to a Maelstrom club. But it wasn’t, thankfully.   
Instead, it was a deathpunk chrome club. It was packed with people, but when the bouncer saw Kerry, he waved them inside instantly, without having to pay. V looked triumphant and Kerry rolled his eyes, staying close to his lover. 

At the bar, women clung to Kerry as they always did when they realized who he was, but they also clung to V, and the jealousy Kerry felt at watching him flirt back, though innocently, was surprising and infuriating. Kerry knew what they had was more than a fling, but they hadn’t expressed it to each other and so V was free to do whatever the fuck he wanted. They hadn’t even talked about it, or if V preferred men only, or women as well. None of them had ever asked _that_ question, and Kerry didn’t feel comfortable being the one doing the asking considering his own fucked up kinks and preferences. 

When V slid a drink over the bar to Kerry, sipping on his own while a blonde beauty clung to his side, Kerry reminded himself to breathe. Maybe it was best just getting fucked up and ignoring it, he though as he took a swig of his drink. V winked at him before he turned to speak to the girl to his other side. She shot glances at Kerry every now and then, seeming to be curious, and then V whispered in her ear, smiling. When she looked at Kerry again her eyes had grown dark, angry and before he knew it, she jumped down from the bar stool and stormed off. 

Kerry frowned, looking at V. He only chuckled, downing the last of his drink before turning and kissing Kerry, deeply.   
“Wanna give the media something, huh?” Kerry spoke between breaths, nipping at V’s lips.   
“Fuck ‘em.” V slid his hand around Kerry’s neck, pushing him closer, “That bitch was a journalist, tailing us from the city center.”   
“What did you say to her?”   
“Told her to fuck off else you’d shoot her in the face,” V smiled against his lips, “Kerry Eurodyne doesn’t fucking share, does he?”   
“Nah, fuck sharing.” Kerry answered, pressing his lips against V’s. 

The band that played, Ass Cobra, was good. The lyrics where all filth, based around genitalia, sex, homoerotica and violence. Kerry hadn’t heard them before, but it was obvious they weren’t new to V, who seemed to enjoy them considering how he nodded along with the harsh riffs and fast lyrics where they stood leaned against the bar. It was a sign of the times, Kerry thought. Less outright political, but still very much so. The way Samurai had conveyed their message now seemed lame in comparison, and still they were one of the strongest inspirations and influences even for this band. What Kerry did now was basically pop in comparison, but it was nice for him to once in a while go back to his roots. Had he been twenty again, like V, he’d have played this kind of shit. This was early Samurai for V’s generation, to be sure. But Samurai became bigger than these punks would ever be. They were too niche. That’s also why they were loved by those who listened to them. 

When the gig was over, more generic rock music took over, DJ’d by a dude with long black hair standing in a corner flipping records. 

V seemed happy, which gladdened Kerry as they soaked themselves with liquor. People approached them every now and again, mostly to speak with Kerry, and he spoke with them, smiled and laughed, all the while keeping a keen eye or hand on V. He didn’t want his own beauty disappearing from his sight.   
He needn’t have worried, V didn’t leave his side unless he had to piss, and the drunker they got, the more people they spoke to. 

As the hour grew late, they’d found a smaller group they sat chatting with, when V invited them all along for an after-party at Kerry’s house. Kerry didn’t mind and stood smoking as V left the bar with four bottles of booze in his arms, a cigarette hanging from his lips.   
“Let’s roll!” He shouted, shoving two bottles into the arms of a slutty brunette hanging on the arms of a lanky rocker. He gave one of the two bottles he still held to Kerry, opening the last one in his arms and drank straight from the bottle as he jumped into Kerry’s car, taking the driver’s seat.   
Kerry ended up in the middle of the backseat with a small blonde on his lap, and he wasn’t sad about that as V blasted glam chrome from the speakers as he drove like the drunken thief he was through the city.   
“Fucking Kerry Eurodyne,” the girl in his lap giggled drunkenly, “I can’t fucking believe it. You sure you’re him?”   
“Damn sure, honey.” Kerry chuckled, smacking her thigh.   
“Ey, paws to yourself, Ker.” V said from the driver’s seat, laughing.   
“Not married yet, babe.” Kerry winked at him as he just flew with the ride. 

The next morning he woke up in a heap of people on the living room floor, his face plastered to the rug beneath him and a pair of tits in his face. V lay next to him, nursing half a bottle of rum in his arms and snoring soundly. When he pushed himself up, he groaned from pain as he stumbled to the bathroom, retching the first thing he did as he reached the toilet.   
After a quick shower and a bottle of water, he walked over to the heap, stepping over a few random bodies, before nudging V with his foot.   
“Ey, sunshine.”  
“Mm?” V turned, cracking one bloodshot eye open. “Ker…”   
“C’mon, let’s go to bed.” Kerry grabbed V’s arm and pulled him up, guiding him up the stairs and into the bedroom, letting him fall onto the bed as Kerry fell with him, falling asleep quickly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *The band Ass Cobra is inspired by Norwegian band Turbonegro, the name taken from their 1996 album. A Scandinavian treasure to be sure, check out their early stuff here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZKiE4R18p34


	9. V - This means war

V didn’t return to live in his apartment. He didn’t know why he had kept it this long anyway. He had scratch enough to rent in a better part of the city if he wanted to, he just hadn’t gotten around to it. Now, he had basically moved in with Kerry, even though they’d never really talked about it, it just came naturally. Kerry didn’t want him to leave, and so when V drove one last time to pick up his stuff from Watson, he dropped his keys off in the building manager’s office and never returned.   
He had once dreamt of living in North Oak, having a huge villa with a pool to just laze in - and the house wasn’t his, but he lived there all the same. Kerry had so much fucking space he didn’t use, they didn’t even have to look for places to put V’s shit - the little he had. It all just fell to place as they cleared up the general mess of the house. 

_”Could’a tell you I told ya so, but I’m not gonna…”_ Johnny reclined in the couch across from V as he sat checking his phone and social media.   
_”So don’t, then.”_ V answered, not looking up.   
_”But it’s all so fucking precious, playing family all of a sudden. You and Ker. Who knew that’s what you both needed.”_   
_”Fuck off.”_ V tapped his phone, going through his messages.   
_”Takemura again, huh? He’s getting antsy.”_   
V sighed and but his phone away, leaning back against the couch, rubbing his face. _”He’s insistent. Maybe there’s some truth to what he says, that he can help. If he could reach out to Hanako…”_  
 _”Don’t even start with that shit._ , Johnny flicked his cigarette away, _”He’s a fucking lying Corpo collarboy. He’ll just screw you over and you’ll be left with shit as the best case scenario. The worst; we’ll be dead.”_   
_”We’re already dying…”_  
Johnny rose and paced in front of V, _”Oh really? Fuck, sorry - I must have forgotten! V, you useless piece of shit, don’t fucking give in to that asshole. If you get killed, it doesn’t just concern you, does it? I’ve told you I’m gonna help you, and I fucking mean it.”_   
_”And how do you figure we should go about it? I don’t trust him either, but fuck, man - I see no other solution right now but to try and place our bets where it’ll actually do something.”_  
 _”And you reckon that’s with an Arasaka henchman who even though he’s been stripped of all his implants and shit, still remains loyal to them? Fuck you V. If you help him, you’re a fucking gonk.”_   
_”Not really your choice in any case, is it? This is_ my _body, not yours. I’m the one who’s dying, you’re already supposed to be dead! But instead, here you are, fucking ruining my life, spewing comments about every little fucking thing I do. Fuck yourself Johnny.”_ V got up, walking away from Johnny, even though he knew he couldn’t walk away from him. Johnny would follow him wherever he went. _“What if this is our only chance, huh? And we ignore it. Then we’re truly and majorly fucked.”_  
 _”Listen to yourself,”_ Johnny buzzed into place to V’s right, leaning against a large graffitied wall. _”Of course there are more chances. You’ve got Rogue. Lemme talk to her, she’ll help. She’ll listen to me.”_  
 _”No fucking way,”_ V glared at Johnny, _”Not after the last time I let you take over with her. Just no.”_

Johnny groaned and disappeared as V shouted for Kerry he’d be back later and then left, taking Jackie’s arch and driving towards Japantown. 

Takemura met him in a diner and Johnny was suspiciously absent during their whole meeting. Takemura made promises V knew he wouldn’t be able to keep, but V was growing desperate. His headaches had become more and more frequent, him losing control over his body, his sight buzzing and the technical malfunction of the chip more and more noticeable. It was eating at him, and V grew more desperate with every day. He didn’t want to fucking die, didn’t want to leave Kerry, Judy or Mama Welles. The pain that wracked through him at the thought of dying, of never seeing Kerry again, never waking up beside him as the bright morning sun rose over the sandy hills of North Oak, never laugh with him again or watch his relaxed, beautiful face as they fucked.   
“I’ll help you.” V said, his face blank as he stood from his chair. “Send me the dets and I’ll get to work on preparing.”   
“Thank you,” Takemura stood too, bowing to V, which in itself felt fucking weird. “You shall not regret this, my friend.”   
V clenched his teeth, shaking his head, “We’ve a week until the parade. Better get every last little detail ready. I’ll see you soon.” 

V left, ignoring the churning feeling of anger stirring within him. He knew it was Johnny fucking him over from the inside, furious at V for going against him. V didn’t fucking care, he stood to lose a lot more than Johnny.   
If this was his chance, he fucking had to take it.   
_”You’re gonna regret this.”_ Johnny spoke, but V said nothing. Instead he got on his bike and just drove until he got so tired he had to turn back around and go home. When he returned it was three in the morning and Kerry was asleep, Nibbles lying curled up between Kerry’s legs, snoring along with him. 

V undressed and climbed into the bed, lying there and staring up into the dark ceiling for god knows how long, until he finally fell asleep. 

Late in the morning the next day, closer to noon, V woke up from Kerry’s shouting. He was on the phone with what V guessed was his manager, Kovachek. The whole Us Cracks fiasco was getting to Kerry, and V knew their little pineapple-show had done next to nothing in stopping those girls from playing. Their concert was tonight, and Kerry was absolutely beside himself, as became clear beyond words as V lay listening to Kerry rage downstairs. 

Pulling on a pair of loose-fitting joggers, V made his way down the stairs to were Kerry was pacing, still on the phone. Raking a hand through his hair, V slouched against the kitchen counter, watching Kerry. It went on for a while longer before Kerry hung up and threw his phone into the wall, still seething through his teeth.   
“That’s bad, huh?” V asked, cocking his head.   
“Fuck,” Kerry shook his head, “I’m fucking losing it, V.”   
“Nah,” V smiled slightly, walking over to his lover and wrapping his arms around him, bringing him close. “Fuck those bitches. We said we would take care of ‘em, didn’t we? So let’s do it. Tonight.”   
Kerry circled his arms around V’s neck, leaning his forehead against V’s shoulder, breathing deeply for a moment. Then he stood silent, tracing parts of V’s serpentine tattoo, as if thinking. “I’ve a mind to just break into their shit concert, pointing a gun at them and fucking killing those kawaii-bitches.”   
V nodded, shrugging slightly. “Okay. Let’s do that.”   
Kerry laughed, “You can’t be fucking serious. Can’t shoot ‘em.”   
V leaned in and kissed Kerry, raking his hands through Kerry’s silver hair. “Don’t have to kill ‘em Ker, just wave your gun around a little, threaten them. Make them understand you mean fucking biz.”   
Kerry chuckled, shaking his head as he looked up at V, and V relished looking into those large beautiful eyes, framed by golden implants and dark, long lashes.   
“So, now that we’ve solved that issue,” V straightened up, leaning back against the counter again, “Where’s my fucking breakfast?”   
Kerry rolled his eyes as he stepped back, swatting V over his chest before walking off. V huffed and turned to the fridge, sighing when he only found bottles of water and beer, half-rotten fruit and too old take away. “The fuck Ker…” 

After having had a shower, V left the villa and drove into the city. He needed to swing by the Afterlife anyway, and so he stopped for a late brunch of sorts before sitting down with Rogue for a few hours, discussing some recent happenings around her territory. V had more or less turned into her right-hand man, something he didn’t mind - except that it really didn’t do him any favors beside bringing him more eddies than before.   
Later in the evening, he met up with Kerry outside Riot where Us Cracks where going to play. Kerry was disguised as best he could, even wearing a baseball cap which V just thought looked weird.   
Checking his gun, they began searching for a way into the club, which wasn’t too hard. With V’s latest arm-implants, he could force open almost any door, unless it was made from military grade steel and so after sneaking into the loading zone behind Riot, they found their way backstage. Finding the little sluts dressing room was easy, V didn’t even have to listen very carefully for their incessant chatter in a mixture of English and Japanese. 

Kerry just walked inside their dressing room, pulling his gun out and so V did what he could, and followed.   
He’d known who Us Cracks were, it was hard not to, living in NC. The promotion for them was everywhere, so even if he had wanted to remain fucking ignorant, moving about as much as he did through the city made it impossible.   
“Now, we’re gonna chat.” Kerry growled, throwing away his baseball cap and cocking his gun, trailing it on the girls.   
“Who the fu-“, one of the girls jumped back, holding her hands over her mouth.   
“Kerry? Kerry Eurodyne?” another one of the girls exclaimed. “Kerry-san, what are you doing?”   
“I’m not your fucking san and this ain’t no meet and greet either, so just shut the fuck up!” Kerry hissed. “V?” 

V sat down on the couch, his leg up on the low table before him and his gun pointed towards the girls, the butt of the gun resting on his thigh.   
“Do as he says…” V spoke low, watching Red, Blue and Purple nervously assessing the situation with Kerry standing before him, shaking from rage.   
“Kerry-san, what happened?” Purple asked, “We had a deal, didn’t we?”   
V cocked an eyebrow, glancing over at Kerry. A deal? That sure was news to him. _The fuck, Ker?_  
“Oh my god, is this about that N54 interview? We didn’t mean to like, offend, or anything. It’s not like that,” Blue said, moving a step closer to Kerry, “Old doesn’t mean anything anymore.”  
V tried not to laugh as he trained his eyes on the fidgeting girls. Christ, they weren’t helping themselves… 

“No wonder their truck didn’t get to them!” Kerry laughed, stumbling back as he looked at V, “They’re even dumber than I thought.”   
“Hang on,” V looked at Kerry, “What this about a fucking deal?”   
“We signed a deal with MSM to play Kerry’s ‘User friendly’,” Red spoke and Kerry looked even more enraged. “It’s like our new single for the North American audience.”   
“Fuck that! Over my _dead_ body!” Kerry waved the gun around.   
“But we’re going to bring your rock into a new era Kerry-san, isn’t that what you wante-“   
“ _Rock_?” Kerry shouted, “ _You_? Lemme tell ya something, an’ it’s been claimed before, but you bitches actually did it. _Rock_ is dead. And you killed it. Congratu-fucking-lations!”   
“Hey,” Red stepped up, “Your manager contacted ours, said you _wanted_ to work with us.”   
“Oh fuck…” V looked up at the ceiling, groaning.   
“Kovachek? The fucking Corpo cuntbag!” Kerry threw his gun away and sank down to his haunches, just breathing for a moment, as if collecting himself.   
“Listen,” Red continued, “The song is an expression of our love for you, _please_ , let’s work something out,” she said as Blue behind her made a heart with her hands and V thought he might be sick. 

_”Rock might be dead, but Kerry’s blind if he doesn’t see these girl’s got potential.”_ Johnny chipped in from the side, looking at the half-naked Red, Purple and Blue with an appreciative, leering nod.   
_”Jesus Christ, Johnny.”_ V shook his head.   
_”What’s he got to do with anything?”_

“Fuck this shit,” Kerry stood, clasping his head. “V, let’s bounce.”   
“Kerry-san, please don’t go, there’s got to be something we can do.” Purple stepped forward, reaching out for Kerry.   
Kerry didn’t answer her, he just glared at V who got up quickly, looking at the three girls for a moment, before following Kerry out. 

V had left his bike at the Afterlife, so he took the keys to Kerry’s car from Kerry’s back pocket and jumped into the driver’s seat as Kerry sat beside him, his head between his knees, seeming to force himself to calm.   
“Argh! _Fuck_!” Kerry shouted, hands digging into his hair. “I can’t _fucking_ believe this. Imma kill the fucker. Fuck him, _fuck_ him!”   
V was silent as he drove them home, the large luxurious car gliding through the streets until they reached the serpentine roads leading up to North Oak. When they had arrived, Kerry got out of the car without a word and locked himself inside his home studio, doing whatever, V had no idea. Getting shitfaced probably. 

V checked on his phone and saw a few missed calls that he returned, sitting down by the bar in the kitchen, waiting for the cook to finish making their dinner. Kerry’s was put in the fridge for now and V ate alone, watching TV and trying to think, to come up with something. He felt fucking heartbroken for Kerry, even though the situation could quite objectively seem like something trivial in comparison to other injustices in the world. But V knew what it felt like having someone else take something from you and making it your own. Johnny stayed ominously quiet as V thought, as if agreeing with him, which was frightening in itself. But for Kerry, his music meant the world to him. He had built his life on his music, and for a group like fucking Us Cracks to use his stuff, it was humiliating. The fact that Kovachek, his fucking manager who was supposed to in some ways, protect Kerry, had gone behind his back in this, was fucked beyond words. ‘Corpo cuntbag’ was far too kind a word to describe that fucker. 

V pulled up his phone again, searching through his contacts.   
“Hey, V, what’s up?”   
“Hey Dino, need a favor.” V said, looking out over the now empty kitchen. He hadn’t had biz with Dino Dinovic in a while, but they belonged to the same scene and knew many of the same people. Dino was alright and a trustable fixer.   
“Anytime choom. What can I do you for?”   
“Need some dirt on Eurodyne’s manager, Kovachek.”   
“Huh.” Dino was silent for a moment, before he cleared his throat. “Shouldn’t be a problem V. I’ll get back to ya.”   
“Thanks man, catch ya later.” 

If it was the last thing he did before the chip ate him from the inside, it was helping Kerry out of this miserable situation. He couldn’t stand seeing Kerry so distressed and fucked up. When Kerry hadn’t come out of his studio for another few hours, V knocked on the door. He didn’t get an answer at first, and so he knocked again. And again. A sliver of ice ran through his spine as he stood outside the locked doors without Kerry answering, and when the memory of Johnny telling V about Kerry’s ‘attempted’ suicide that Johnny believed to be some made-up promotional shit, V almost panicked. Johnny was mostly right about things concerning his friends, but he was also an asshole who had some obvious issues sympathizing with others but himself. 

Kicking the door open, he found Kerry passed out with an empty bottle of whiskey on the floor beside him. Sighing, V walked over and felt for a pulse, just to be sure. It was there, Kerry’s ticker still pumping steadily in his chest and V felt as if he could slap the gonk for making him worry.   
Picking up the empty bottle and throwing it in the trash, V left Kerry sleeping in there, making sure he lay in a way that would make sure he didn’t choke on his own vomit in his sleep, and then went to their bedroom and a waiting Nibbles who sat washing herself on the edge of the bed.   
“Let’s get some sleep, huh?” he said to Nibbles as he sat down next to the cat, kicking off his boots.


	10. Kerry - Tainted love

Kerry woke up in his home studio feeling like fucking shit. As he stumbled to the bathroom he had to hold in what little was left in his stomach that threatened to come up. When he’d heaved a few times into the toilet without much result, he went straight for the downstairs bar and grabbed himself a six-pack of beer, then he put a pair of shades over his eyes and went out to his pool. It was still early morning, but he didn’t care. It was a warm, dry day that met him outside and after he’d stripped down to his birthday suit, he jumped into the water and just floated for a bit. It felt like heaven for his aching head and sore body.  
Swimming back to the edge, he cracked open a beer and drank deep. Hair of the dog, a highly underrated solution to situations like these, he thought as he leaned his head back against the edge, allowing his body to just exist in the lukewarm water.  
He’d almost fallen asleep again by the time a shadow blocked out the sun and Kerry looked up, seeing V standing above him in his joggers and a worn out loose wifebeater with the logo of Gloryhole Bandits. Damn, but he was gorgeous. 

V sat down in the sand beside the pool, pulling his joggers up so he could dip his feet and shins in the water as he stroked Kerry’s hair back from his forehead.  
“Things settled a little?” V asked, reaching for a beer and cracking it open. He pulled down his own sunglasses to shade him from the Cali sun as he took a sip of the beer and kept stroking Kerry’s hair.  
“Well… Who the fuck knows?” Kerry grumbled and drank the last swig from his can before throwing it away. “Gimme ‘nother, still got a headache.”  
V reached for another beer and gave it to Kerry, slowly nursing his own.  
“What time is it?” Kerry asked.  
“9.30.” V said, spreading his toes in the water. “I gotta leave in a few hours. Gonna be away for a couple of days, hopefully it won’t take too long.”  
“For what?”  
“That shit with the parade in Japantown.” V leaned back on his elbows, sipping his beer. “Johnny doesn’t like it. Don’t really talk to me right now because of it. But I gotta do it. Could be our only chance.”  
“It dangerous?” Kerry licked his lips, looking back up at V from under his shades.  
“Yeah.”  
V didn’t say anything else, and Kerry just nodded. 

V’s phone rang and he answered, getting up and walking away from the pool, speaking in a hushed voice as he sat down in the shade. Kerry kept lying in the pool for a long while, just enjoying the slight breeze and the feeling of the water.  
When he finally got up, it was past lunch and his whole body felt as if it had turned into a prune. V was cleaning a rifle in the living room and going over his stuff, dressed in black jeans, combat boots and a plain hoodie. His shades were pulled up, keeping his slicked back hair in place as he worked and a cigarette hung from between his lips. 

Kerry walked naked over to the bathroom and wrapped himself in a blood red robe before he went and grabbed a Nicola before he sat down across from V.  
“What the fuck do I do if you don’t come back?” Kerry said, lighting a cigarette. “Do I bury you? Will they even know to bring your corpse to me?”  
V looked up, frowning. “I’ll come back, Ker.”  
“You don’t know that.”  
“Yeah, I do.” V put the rifle down and leaned back, spreading his knees wide as he watched Kerry intently. “I’m not fucking leaving you Kerry. I’ve survived worse things, several times over.”  
Kerry shook his head, sighing.  
“What? You think some Arasaka bitch’s gonna flatline me? Thanks for the trust.” 

Kerry sat the Nicola down on the glass table with a piercing thunk, anger rushing through him as he glared at V.  
“You think I’m stupid?” Kerry hissed, leaning his elbows on his knees. “Don’t make promises you can’t keep. A bullet in the wrong place, and you’re gone.”  
“Yeah,” V nodded, “And if a brick falls from the sky the next time you leave the house, you’re out. Fuck’s sake, Ker, you can’t think like that. Else you’ll be fuckin’ scared to just leave your house. Shit happens that’s beyond our control. I should fucking know. And you know as well as I do that this is NC, nobody dies in their bed of old age in this damned city.” 

Kerry looked away from V, resting his head on his hands, wishing for words to spill which didn’t.  
“Hey,” V had moved and sat down beside him, his hand touching Kerry’s shoulder. “I’ll come back. And if I don’t, I’ve listed you as my emergency contact. Not like I have anyone else they could bring me to. Whatever the fuck happens, I’m coming back to you, dead or alive.”

Kerry looked up at V, “I’ve two kids, you know.”  
V snorted, obviously amused at the sudden turn in subject, “Yeah… Johnny told me. Don’t ask how he found out…”  
“Nah, prolly don’t wanna know… Fuck, V. If I’ve learned anything from the shit-show that was my marriage with their mother, was that it fuckin’ hurts to rely too much on someone. And still, still here I fuckin’ am.” Kerry leaned back into the corner of the couch, just looking at V, taking him in.  
“We’ll be fine,” V sad as he reached for Kerry’s cheek, leaning in close. “But I gotta do this Ker. It might be the only way for me to survive in the long run, to remove the chip.”  
Kerry nodded slowly, frowning as pain wracked through him. He didn’t like being remined of the fact that V was truly running out of time, and fucking fast. 

After a long silence, where they just sat there, smoking and thinking, V suddenly asked; “What’re their names? Your kids?”  
“Uh… Ted and Kim.” Kerry answered, almost ashamed he had to think for a second to remember their damned names. He hadn’t seen them in person in a long time and most of the time, he didn’t really think too much of them. They lived completely different lives, Kerry might just as well have been a miserable sperm-donor, spurting them into their mother on the few occasions he and Louise actually fucked after they got married. “Don’t see ‘em often, don’t really get along with their mother.”  
“I can imagine.” V nodded slowly. “I mean, I’m pretty sure you’re not even bi. She must have felt cheated.”  
Kerry smiled miserably, shaking his head. “I tried to be normal. Didn’t go too fuckin’ well. Couldn’t even stay faithful for a damned year. I fucking ruined her life.”  
V shrugged as he raked his fingers through Kerry’s hair, his nails biting into his scalp, “Maybe. Not much you can do about it now though. What’s past, is past - and all that shit.”  
“Yeah.” Kerry closed his eyes, leaning into V’s hand. “You’re right.” 

They sat in the living room until the afternoon turned into early evening and V needed to leave. When he was gone, Kerry felt more alone than he had in months. He’d only been with V for a short while, and yet they now lived together, shared a fucking life, a home. He was so fucking attached to him the thought of losing him burned his insides, and still, he couldn’t keep V from doing what he did. It would be so selfish he wasn’t sure he’d be able to live with himself if he guilted V out of doing what he had to do. And Kerry knew the reason, knew why V needed to get Johnny out of his head, but he was so spoiled from years of getting whatever he wanted, taking what he wished and lusted after, that he couldn’t help but wish things were different, just a fraction, if anything, more normal. But nothing in Kerry Eurodyne’s life would ever be fucking normal and _that_ , was a sad truth indeed.


	11. V - Transmission

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A recommendation for the chapter:  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L1cHSoARzS0 Joy Division - Shadowplay

V drove through the city in his Avenger, letting the neon lights flash by as he settled his nerves. Kerry had been anxious, angry and afraid, and they’d fought. Not in a serious way, though what they discussed had been serious. Way too serious for V at this point. He had too much on his plate to handle this shit with Kerry on top of everything else. 

He could feel Johnny’s ‘I told you so’ hanging in the air inside his car, but Johnny remained quiet, pissed off. Getting involved with Kerry in the middle of all this had been a bad idea, and maybe doing this shit for Takemura was a mistake. There was no turning back now, V had made his choice and he would have to get himself out of it alive. For himself, foremost, but also for Johnny and Kerry’s sake. They all stood to lose a hell of a lot, depending on how this went. If V believed in a God, this would be the time to pray. Fortunately, or unfortunately, he didn’t. The crazy choom getting himself flatlined in that BD had whipped away every last trace of some kind of hope in that direction for V. What fucking god allowed that shit to happen? Fuck that.  
Whatever happened tonight, it might kill him, or it might bring him a step closer to get rid of the chip. And all V knew in the end was that every last bit counted, didn’t it?

He met up with Takemura who was as sardonic as he’d ever been, not one for nervous jokes or even a second of small talk. They made sure their signals worked and that they could communicate as V tried to get to all three of the snipers, clearing the way for Takemura to jump on the float and reach Hanako. V had received the dets on where the snipers would be, and Takemura would guide him along the way, as best as he could while waiting. 

Japantown was filled with people, masses standing everywhere, shouting and celebrating - and it was easy for V to disappear behind them, slowly moving amongst the bodies pressed together on floor after floor as he climbed ladders and forced open doors to reach the hidden spots where the snipers were.  
He could sneak behind many of the guards on duty as his GPS system pinged them for him, and when he was on the floor beneath the first sniper, he sat down to assemble his rifle. He attached the silencer and then loaded the clip before cocking the rifle and leaving his bag behind. 

The first sniper went down easily and V was soon on his way to the second one. That was when the drones spotted him and V had difficulties scanning them as they hid behind the large screamsheets, only appearing every few seconds. Eventually, he managed to short circuit them both and could be on his way again. His head had began to hurt and he needed to fucking concentrate as he crouched, searching for the second sniper. Finding him eventually, V managed to get a clean shot on him from far away and the second one went down without issue. He quickly hurried along to the third but his time was running out, as Hanako’s float was coming closer and closer. Takemura hissed at him over the signal, stressing the importance of nothing going wrong, and V had to clench his jaws not to bark back at him to just shut the fuck up.  
_”Doesn’t bode well, this…”_ Johnny spoke, standing leaned beside the door leading towards the third sniper. _”If you don’t fuck up, he will.”_  
V ignored Johnny’s voice, sounding so sure of himself and superior and instead snuck through the doors, quickly disarming a tripwire waiting for him. 

To reach the third one, he had to get past several guards and reach a different house all together. It was difficult, as he not only had to keep from being discovered by the guards, but by a Netrunner as well. As soon as he scanned something, he had to make sure he didn’t pass 15 seconds, else the Netrunner would be able to pinpoint his location. It was easy with the cameras, only taking a handful of seconds to disable, but the drone. Those motherfucking drones ate at his RAM’s and took what felt like ages to shirt circuit. 

When he’d finally downed the third sniper, all hell broke loose. The Netrunner managed to pinpoint him, zooning in on him and pointing every goddamned guard in the vicinity to him and V had no choice but to flee, if only to divert the attention from Takemura and Hanako’s float. He ditched his rifle, grabbing a pistol he’d shoved down the lining of his pants as he ran through stairs, jumping over railings and dodging guards whenever he could. There were cameras everywhere and V could hear Johnny scream that this was going to hell.  
Out of breath and with sweat running coldly along his spine, V found a hidden spot where he could access Takemura again. Takemura had managed get inside Hanako’s float, and V only had to reach the security system in her float and disable it - which was easily handled - and Takemura could approach her. He was going to talk to her. He’d fucking _promised_ V she would listen to him, hear him out.  
What happened next, was _not_ part of the plan. Hanako reacted worse than poorly to Takamura breaking onto her float.  
_”Who would’a guessed?”_ Johnny hissed and V swore.  
He watched as Takemura grapped at Hanako like some fucking gonk, then he fucking _shot_ her and Johnny lost it.  
“ _Fuck_!” V swore as he yanked his cable from the system and was on his feet in seconds.  
_”Fucking run, V!”_ Johnny shouted, _”The fuck did I tell ya?! Go! Fuck!”_

And V ran. Fuck, he ran, and ran, and ran. Bullets whistled past him as he jumped from a steep ledge to another, running down stairs and eventually ending up outside Japantown, his breath heaving, sweat running into his eyes, blinding him. Standing still for a sec, he noticed he was bleeding. The fucking guards had gotten him in his left arm, only the scrape from a whistling bullet, but still. It bleed pretty good. 

“Fuck, fuck, fuck!” V clutched his knees, trying to breathe.  
His phone rang and V had to wrestle with himself to get the phone out of his pocket.  
“V,” it was Takemura.  
“What the _actual fuck_ , man. Have you gone completely insane? You fucking shot her!”  
“It was only a tranquilizer.” Takemura sounded so calm and collected it was almost provocative.  
“Only a tran… For fuck’s sake! Do you have any idea of the fucking repercussions this will have?”  
Takemura ignored him and just continued talking, “I’ve brought Hanako-san to a safe place. You have to come here, you are the witness, you have to tell her what you saw.”  
V tried to control his breathing, leaning against a building in a back alley as he tried to regain his wits. “I… Takemura, what the fuck, man?”  
“Listen to me V, I will send you the address. Go to this address and knock four times on the door. I repeat, _four_ times. Do you understand?”  
“Fuck this shit.”  
“Do as I say, V. You’re in this with me. Without you, we will gain nothing. You must come.” 

Takemura hung up and within a minute V had received an address ten minutes from his current location. V swore and started walking, keeping to the back alleys and shadows. He held his phone in a tight grip as he walked, then he looked at it, unlocking it and staring at the one contact he wanted to call right now, the one person he wished to see. But he put his phone away, just transferring the address into his GPS, and walked on. He brought this on himself and Johnny was fucking right. V felt like a complete gonk, and now he had no choice. If he didn’t show up, he knew Takemura had the means to find him and do away with him. Yeah, V was a good merc, a great one; but he wasn’t a military-trained fucking assassin like Takemura; the emperors former goddamned bodyguard. Takemura with his implants had been in the same league as Adam Smasher, which meant that without his implants, he was still a huge threat. 

_”Rogue will find a way.”_ Johnny said as V walked hurriedly in the darkness, avoiding tripping on old garbage and broken dumpsters. _”Was gonna say I told you so about this whole damn mess, so - I fuckin’ told you so, shithead.”_  
_”Yeah, you did…”_ V said, _”Ain’t exactly making it better though.”_  
_”Oh, wow, do you want a hug? Want me to tell ya daddy’s proud of you and give you a fuckin’ medal? This is our lives at stake here, and you’re throwing them away for this traitor!”_  
V looked at him, raising an eyebrow, _”We’ve no choice now. Gotta ride this out, Johnny.”_  
_”Yeah, thanks for that, asshole. We tried it your way,”_ Johnny said, looking back at V, _”If we make it out alive from this, we’re doin’ it my way.”_  
_”And you’re sure Rogue will listen to you?”_  
_”Fuck yes, she’ll listen!”_ Johnny growled, disappearing from view as V entered into the building, stepping into a worn down stairwell. 

Knocking four times, the door opened and V was pulled inside quickly by a paranoid-looking, ruffled Takemura.  
“The fuck, man!” V hissed, pushing Takemura’s hands off of him.  
“She’s in there.” Takemura nodded further inside the apartment, a messy and dark shithole with mold on the wallpaper and a generally unpleasant odor reeking from the floor. “I tried to offer her some tea.”  
V just stared at Takemura before he walked towards Hanako. Takemura was on his heels, quickly standing at a respectful distance from Hanako, introducing V. V didn’t give a shit and so he just sat down across from her and cut to the chase.  
“I saw your brother, Yorinobu, kill Saburo Arasaka in his suite at the Konpeki Plaza. He strangled him.”  
The woman, who was dressed in fine, _real_ silks, watched V with a blank expression, completely ignoring Takemura who stood to her left.  
“It’s the truth. We had no intention to harm you and I’m sorry for all this, but you had to know the truth. And you gotta help me, you’re the only one who can. I got your brother’s Relic in my head, and it’s killing me. That’s why I was in Yorinobu’s suite at the time of your father’s murder, that’s how I saw it.”  
“Why should I believe any of this?” Hanako finally spoke.  
“Scan me, if you wish.” 

Before Hanako had any chance to deny to do so, or wire him - a blast shocked the entire building, bright light flashing from behind the covered windows and V flung himself on the floor. When he came to, the entire apartment was flooded with Corpo military, firing at anything that moved.  
Johnny shouted for him to move, but V couldn’t fucking breathe, everything hurt and his sight was buzzing, the Relic malfunctioning worse than it had for a long time.  
_”Move! Now, goddamn you!”_ Johnny screamed and V finally got to his feet, dodging and ducking, until he fell out of the building from a fire escape, tumbling into a dumpster. 

V woke up in Pacifica. He had no idea how long he’d been out or how he’d gotten there. Johnny stood leaned against the railing, looking out over the vast sea, doing his pretend-smoking as usual.  
_”Ugh, where are we?”_  
_”This is the hotel I first came to after the war, when I had deserted. Hid in here for a month, just staring at the ocean, or… the ceiling fan.”_ Johnny spoke. _”This is were it all started, and now even this shithole is closed up and abandoned.”_  
_”So what the fuck are we doin’ here?”_ V asked, trying to pull himself up into a sitting position. It hurt like a motherfucker, his whole body beat. He was dying, now he could truly feel it.  
_”There’s not much time left for us. It’s taken me some time, but I get it V, what you’re doin’. It’s time we set things to rights, for the both of us.”_  
_”The fuck does that even mean?”_  
_”C’mon, wanna show you something,”_ Johnny straightened up and walked around a corner.  
V managed to stand after a few moments, holding on to the wall as he followed. When they arrived at a broken window, Johnny wanted him to get inside. Just lifting his fucking legs drained him completely, and after falling inside, V had to drag himself to a cupboard hidden under the sink that Johnny pointed at. Inside, he found a pair of dog tags, old military issue. 

_”Got ‘em from a choom I served with. He died and I was left with ‘em. Now, I’m givin’ ‘em to you.”_  
_”Why?”_  
_”When the time comes, I’ll back down. Your body is yours, I won’t do anything to hinder you. This is the token of my promise. I just want you to promise something in return.”_  
_”What’s that?”_  
_”That we bring down ‘saka, hard.”_

V almost laughed, thumbing the dog tags, before putting them on, smiling slightly. _”We’ll burn ‘em to the ground.”_  
Johnny nodded, smiling. _”Best call someone.”_

V felt after his phone and found it in his pocket. He fished it out and tapped at it. Battery was out and he groaned. “Fuck.”  
_”By the way, what happened to Takemura?”_  
Johnny rose from his chair, yawning as if bored, _”Dead.”_

V ended up calling for Delamain in the end after begging a shop keeper to lend V his phone. V was so tired he didn’t fucking care anymore about the gonk AI who couldn’t just keep quiet. Delamain took V to Vic who fixed him up and after a few hours there and a quick shower to wash off dirt, blood and the stink from the dumpster, V dressed in a pair of too big borrowed sweats and one of Vic’s old t-shirts and made his way out again to Delamain who stood waiting.  
“Take me home.”  
“Watson, sir?”  
“Don’t live there anymore. North Oak, 20458.”  
“Establishing connection… Route found. Journey towards Villa Eurodyne initiated. Arrival expected in approximately 45 minutes.” 

The gates opened with a scan and Delamain dropped him off without issue. V drowsily stumbled into the house, shouting for Kerry as he closed the door behind him. The house was eerily empty, which it was even with Kerry in it, since the gonk hadn’t even furnished a third of the place properly, but now it was just dark and quiet.  
_”Seems he’s out…”_ Johnny spoke as V clapped for the lights to come alight. They did, and he walked up to the bedroom, where he found Nibbles sleeping happily. He petted her for a moment before he checked the time for the first time since Japantown. He had been gone for two days.  
Walking down, he checked his phone and saw it had finally recharged some, and he dialed Kerry. 

“V, fuck!” Kerry showed up on his screen, his eyes wide and a smile on his face. “You’re home?”  
“Yeah, Ker. I’m fucking beat. Where are ya?”  
“Studio, I’ll be home in an hour or so. Want me to grab some food?”  
“That’d be great. I’ll go for whatever, honestly.” V smiled, “I’ve… I’ve missed you babe.”  
“Me too,” Kerry cleared his throat with a smile, before licking his lips, “Hey, uh, take a long shower, have a nap or whatever, and I’ll see you in a bit, yeah?”  
“Yeah, see ya.” 

V slipped out of his borrowed clothes and into his own joggers and a hoodie before he laid down in the bed with Nibbles, petting the cat until he fell asleep with her on his chest.  
He was woken up a while later by Kerry arriving home, shouting for him to get downstairs and eat. V pushed Nibbles off his chest and walked down the stairs and into the kitchen. Kerry had never looked more gorgeous as he was standing in his damn boots, tight pants and studded biker west, unpacking Chinese. After all the shit V had been through the past two days, that mundane fucking thing was a sight for his all too sore eyes.  
“Hey,” V said, leaning against the doorframe.  
Kerry turned to him, smiling, “Hey there. Chinese for dinner, Filipino for dessert?”  
V rolled his eyes and laughed, “Worst pick up I’ve ever heard.”  
Kerry winked at him before turning around and getting two plates and cutlery. “C’mon princess, let’s eat.” 

Dino called V the next morning about Kovachek and V gave him his blessing to go ahead as planned. He instantly transferred 40.000 €$, a low cost for the fun Kerry’s manager was sure to have for a few days ahead. 

Next on his list for the day was Rogue, Johnny reminding him of wanting to talk to her, but first V wanted to do it himself, and it wasn’t exactly easy trying to explain the situation for her over the holo, but V didn’t want to leave for the Afterlife just now. He’d just woken up after one night at home and he needed to rest, to just do nothing for a few days. Spend some time with Kerry.  
“Why don’t you come over?” He asked Rogue who seemed to hesitate for a moment.  
“Kerry’s place?” She said, sounding reluctant. “He never much liked me.”  
V shrugged, “He won’t disturb us. Come over, we’ll talk. Shit’s serious Rogue.”  
“Alright.” 

Rogue showed up an hour later as V lazed on the terrace looking out towards the city center. The cleaning lady was there and had shown Rogue in and while Kerry greeted her, he did so without much enthusiasm and then left as Rogue sat down on the sunbed beside V.  
“So,” Rogue began, clasping her hands as she leaned back against the sunbed. “What’s going on, V?”  
V described the situation in its entirety, how things had gone with Takemura, how fucked up it had ended and what he needed. He spoke about Johnny’s ideas as Johnny sat down beside Rogue, watching her like a thirsty pup. Rogue nodded and listened, thinking. 

“So, Mikoshi?”  
“Yeah,” V said, “From the data I’ve gathered, it should be accessible through Arasaka, but how, I don’t know yet. Honestly Rogue, I’m running out of time. Johnny and me both.”  
Rogue nodded and V poured her some whiskey.  
“I’m not dead yet, but… I don’t want to flatline.” V said, holding her gaze. “During the gig with Takemura, when it all escalated, I was fucking close.”  
Rogue licked her lips, taking a sip of the whiskey.  
V pushed his sunglasses up, “I’m getting tired Rogue, Johnny’s taking over. He doesn’t mean to, he can’t help it. But it’s the reality of things. We need to reach Mikoshi and we need to establish a connection to Alt Cunningham, a real one. The Voodoo boys and their little op did shit,” V shook his head, “Johnny or me, one of us need to speak to her.” 

Rogue watched him, her hands folded in her lap, her lips pursed. V knew she didn’t like hearing about Alt, but V took a chance, a chance that she might like V enough to push that old shit aside to help him. He took a deep breath as he watched her, and after a moment Rogue nodded, putting the glass of whiskey down.  
“I’ll do whatever I can.”  
“Thanks, Rogue.” V said, holding her gaze, “I’ll owe you, big time.”  
“Yeah.” Rogue nodded and then stood, watching V for another moment, before she took her leave. 

When Rogue had left, V went through his phone. Being offline for two days had left him a fucking mass of messages from all kinds of shit. What he loathed the most was all the damned junk mail that seemed to pour into his inbox. He’d also gotten messages from several fixers, asking him to do gigs or buy some vehicle. Judy had messaged him and V answered, hoping she was alright. Then, he saw than Panam had messaged him a few times and suddenly he felt bad. He should have called her like, last week, but to be honest, it had slipped his mind. After all, he’d had a few things on his mind.  
He looked over her messages for a moment or two, before pressing the call-button. 

“Finally!” Panam said first thing as she answered. “You took your good god damn time.”  
“Yeah, been busy.”  
“Jerking off and watching TV does not fucking count, asshole. Where’s my ride and my merch?”  
“Hey, calm down bitch,” V frowned, “That fuckin’ tone of yours won’t get it to ya faster.”  
“I _fucking_ knew it!” Panam hissed, “You and that damned bitch Rogue, you’re fucking me over! I should’a just left you to die with those Arasaka fuckers!”  
“Nice, Panam.” V said, shaking his head. “Thanks. But I said I’d help you and I will, so hold off on the rage for a while longer, huh?”  
“Fine! When can we meet? I’ll swing by and pick you up.”  
“Nah, I’ll meet you in the Badlands. Gimme two days and I’ll send you the coordinates.” 

Leaving his sunbed, V walked inside and found Kerry in the kitchen, fumbling with his phone.  
“What’s up?” V asked.  
“Nothin’,” Kerry shook his head, “Tryin’ to figure this whole shit out with Us Cracks. Fuck, Kovachek really pulled one on me, huh?”  
V shrugged and sat down across from Kerry.  
“The purple one has been tryin’ to reach me. She’s texting, wanting a solution. Maybe it’s what I gotta do to get rid of this, to just let it go.”  
“It’s your choice, Ker.” V grimaced, “But, fuck, I don’t think it’ll make ya feel any better if you do. Fuck ‘em. Take them to court if you have to.”  
“Hm,” Kerry shook his head, “Nah, I guess you’re right. Fuck them bitches. There’s no contract, only a fucking deal between Kovachek and their manager. I’ll sue the shit out of him.”  
V smiled, leaning back in his chair as he lit a cigarette. “Yeah, about him…”  
Kerry frowned, “What? V, you done something?”  
V shrugged, “It’s a surprise…” he winked and Kerry smiled back, laughing as he leaned over the table and kissed V, deeply.  
“Got a surprise for you too, babe.” Kerry spoke against his lips, “Meet me at the marina by seven tonight?”


	12. Kerry/V - Dancing with myself

**Kerry**

Kovachek was out of town for some shit Kerry had no idea what it was. The bastard wasn’t answering his phone, which was just as well, as long as he hadn’t fled the country in his ugly ass yacht. For that piece of laughable vulgar shit, Kerry had his own plans. A quick check with the marina’s security under a false name and a fat roll of eddies under the table, Kerry was informed the boat was still docked, and empty.

After a good long yoga session as the evening began to fall over the city, Kerry drove down to the docks. V would catch up with him in just a while, which left Kerry some time to just sit there, playing his guitar, letting his thoughts come and go as they pleased. 

That he’d even began to think the thought about selling out to those Japanese little shits, humiliated him. The whole thing was fucking humiliating to begin with, and it was all thanks to V for putting a fucking stop to it, helping him out all throughout the way. What V had done for him… Fuck, Kerry couldn’t remember the last someone had had his back in such a way, without expecting anything in return. V just wanted to be with him, which wasn’t weird, Kerry guessed. A lot of people wanted to be with Kerry Eurodyne, but a vast majority of those wanted it for his persona, his scratch, the supposed luxury it brought being close to him. V knew that shit was all superficial, a fragile shell in many ways, of Kerry trying to fill his gonk life with something to compensate for all the shit he’d fucked up along the way. And it didn’t bother V. He’d never chastised him for getting drunk off his ass, for starting the morning with a whiskey, for having doubts, for screaming too much or just messing up in general. He’d helped out where he could, gotten shitfaced alongside him and just let Kerry do whatever the fuck he wished, unless it was straight out attacking V’s own choices, but Kerry thought that was only fair. 

But something _had_ changed. The change in everything that was his life, was obvious. It had begun to go downhill when Johnny left. After that, Kerry had been a fucking wreck, always trying to live up to Johnny Silverhand’s fucking ghost, always seeing him in every goddamned corner and trying to outdo him; and the sad fact about that was that Kerry was never Johnny, and he could never do what Johnny had done. Instead, he’d built his own legacy, his own name; and he’d gotten so fucking rich off of it, he could wipe his own damn ass with eddies if he wished - and still, he was wading in the shadows of Johnny. That’s until V came along, dragged into Kerry’s life as Johnny made his reappearance. But it was V who had changed things, he was the culprit. 

Life’s loops, one chapter closing and another opening. It’s all in fucking loops, going on and on, just like the chords he sat playing, the same he and V had worked on for a while now. They had grown, finally finding themselves in Kerry’s fingers, from imperfection to something perfect, new, _raw_. Something exciting, a new beginning. 

When the loud rumble from V’s arch sounded, Kerry put down his guitar and stood, watching as V jumped off his bike and made his way down the pier. It was good seeing him like that, rested and healthy in a way only youth could do. V was dressed in a tight pair of black jeans, his winklepickers and a patched leather jacket. The sun was going down, but he was still wearing shades, looking like some shit eating douche that knew all too well how fucking gorgeous he was, especially when smiling. V had thin lips, but a broad smile with almost-there dimples in his cheeks. His blonde hair was thick where he left it a bit longer, only shaving the sides of his head and then pulling the hair back with wax. 

He’d certainly lucked out genetically, the kid. Way more so than Kerry, who’d looked good when young, but had then turned to implants and shit to enhance and slow down his ageing. That dent in his confidence he’d felt the first time he was left alone with V, was still churning inside him at times, which was gonk - but it all came back to far reaching insecurities. Insecurities Kerry would deal with, tonight, throwing them into the sea and fucking leaving them there. Now, he just wanted to live, free and unburdened by the ghosts of the past. 

“Ahoy there, scallywag.” Kerry put his leg up on the gunwale, waving for V to come aboard.   
V snorted as he jumped up on the bridge, walking over, “Right back at ya, Ker. What’s going on?”   
“Up for a cruise around the bay, kickin’ it with ol’ Kerry?”   
Kerry jumped down into the back of the boat, walking over to the sofas built in place, grabbing his guitar again and sitting down. V followed him, sinking down into the corner across from Kerry, putting his feet up.   
“Yeah,” V smiled, “Ol’ Kerry’s my favorite Kerry, so how could I refuse?”   
Kerry shook his head with a smile and leaned back. “Nova.”   
“So, this the surprise?” V asked, “A cruise?”   
“Nah, nah, nah…” Kerry shook his head, “New beginnings, shit like that. Loops, life, ya know.”   
V grimaced, “Huh?”   
Kerry rolled his eyes, “Babe, please. Don’t make me fuckin’ ruin it.”   
“Yeah, yeah, sorry. Loops, life, shit - whatever. I’ll bite.”   
“Music to my fuckin’ ears. Off we go!” Kerry laughed before remembering he had to get the fucking boat to start too. Damn. “Now, if I could find the button to raise… Ah, fuck it. Seamurai, all aboard!”   
“Wait, ‘Seamurai’?” You’re fucking joking?” V sputtered, pulling his shades up. “The fuck, Ker?”   
“What?” Kerry said, smiling as the yacht raised the bridge and then took off, the route already programmed into its memory. “It’s not my damn boat. You really think I’d name my boat ‘Seamurai’? Please.”   
“Who’s is it then?”  
Kerry winked and V made an ‘Ah’ sound and smiled, leaning back again. Then Kerry began playing and they were quiet for some time, just enjoying the breeze and the sunset, casting its orange light over the water. V lit a cigarette and gazed up into the sky, following Kerry’s chords with a hand clapping his stomach and his head nodding along slowly. 

This was living, Kerry decided. The fact that he would trash this whole get up was just the liberating crescendo of it all. This was the turning point, and he couldn’t think of anyone he’d rather spend it with, to begin anew with, than V. 

“You know,” Kerry began and V looked up at him, raising a perfect dark-blonde eyebrow. “First ever tune I wrote that was worth a damn, I wrote at sea. An’ you notice? We’re on to something fresh again tonight, something new.”   
V nodded, then he smiled, “Bleed the beat, right?”   
“Know me too well already, kid.” Kerry snorted, “Yeah. Wrote it while working on a cruise ship. Decks, pools, more pools - shrimp. Y’know the deal. Bells ‘n whistles. Everybody thinks that song is about stickin’ it to Corpo fascistas.”   
“So, what’s it about, ol’ man?” V gave him a mischievous grin before throwing the butt of the smoke into the ocean.   
“Busted my ass off on that boat, servin’ drinks, bustin’ tables.” Kerry continued, “The little free time I had, I composed until my fingers bled. Had to watch out not to stain their precious porcelain. And there you have it, a song about bleeding in service of the rich. But, people hear what they wanna hear. But man, was that a hit, one of Samurai’s biggest! Just like this one will be… Raw, real. New…”   
“Mm,” V nodded, a small, thoughtful smile grazed his thin lips and Kerry put his guitar away.

“I need ya, V.” Kerry said, leaning his head against the back of the sofa. “All this fuckin’ time, chasing ghosts, tryin’ to live so many different damn lives I’ve already forgotten most of them, an’ all I needed, was you. You’ve helped me, straightened me out. The whole Us Cracks fiasco, fuck. I would’ve ended up doing something I’d hated myself for, if it wasn’t for you. You shake things up, turn me into something better, less… Scared of my own fuckin’ shadow.”  
“Hey,” V caught his eyes, “You’re already all that Ker, you just don’t see it in yourself.”   
“Eh, doubt it,” Kerry shook his head, “Had what folk’s call an epiphany, being with you. No more of this drunken, drugged up mayhem, gonk schemes, nothing. Done with that shit. Well, startin’ tomorrow.”  
“What?” V burst out, smiling.   
“Alright!” Kerry stood, grabbing his guitar - an expensive piece, only five of them in the whole world, “Now it’s time for a breath of freedom.” And he smashed the guitar against the floor, its neck breaking and pieces of it flying all over. After trashing it completely, he threw it overboard, stumbling back as he laughed. V sat shocked for a moment, just looking at him. “C’mon kid, let’s trash this whole ride. Gonna sit there like a gonk or help me?” 

V got up and followed him inside.

**V**

The entire inside of the yacht was smashed to pieces and Kerry stood in the middle of it, laughing as he poked at a stereo, getting some music going. V sat down on a couch inside, breath heaving from the mayhem. He’d managed to cut himself on some glass from the bar, but it was so minor it meant nothing. Instead, he leaned back, watching Kerry. V was already hard, needing to have him, to touch him, feel him. There were too many emotions at once and V didn’t know what to do with them all. Fucking was a great outlet, and if he read Kerry right, this was leading up to just that.

The music got going and Kerry spun around, pulling his arms up before reaching back and pulling his wifebeater off as he came closer to V. Without hesitating, V grabbed a hold of Kerry’s pants and pulled him down into his lap, kissing him hard. Lips bruised against teeth as fingers raked over soft, tattooed skin, and as Kerry ground into V, he couldn’t help the moan escaping him. He pushed back and Kerry reached down, unbuckling V’s pants and then slipped down on the floor, taking V’s cock into his hot mouth. 

As Kerry blew him, the boat stopped. Not that V noticed, but it must have happened around then, because suddenly in a short moment of clarity during the frenzied fucking, as Kerry was inches deep inside him, they weren’t moving anymore and it had gone completely dark out.   
“Fuck, V,” Kerry groaned as he fucked into V, a hand wrapped around V’s neck as V lay there, touching himself and just giving Kerry all that he had.   
“Yeah,” V breathed, “Harder.”   
Kerry lost it them, pushing harder and harder into him, his hips smacking erratically against V’s ass. V pulled Kerry’s head down to his own and kissed him, holding their lips close as V came. Kerry wasn’t far behind and he bit into V’s lower lip as he spilled inside him. 

Sweaty and completely limp, _everywhere_ , V felt Kerry pull out of him and roll off of him, sitting up as he lit a cigarette and taking a few drags before passing it to V.   
“Damn,” V said, pulling himself up, leaning his head against Kerry’s shoulder, pulling a deep drag of smoke “You should steel yachts more often.”   
Kerry chuckled, shaking his head, “We’re not just stealing it… Time to get out of Dodge. Gonna blow this fucker to pieces.”   
V sat up, laughing, “Got dough stashed?”   
“Mhm,” Kerry nodded, just gotta light this piece of shit on fire, and then jump.” 

A few bottles of all too expensive booze and a lighter was all they needed to get a small, cozy fire started and before the boat blew into a million pieces, Kerry and V both had jumped into the ocean and gotten themselves to the shore.   
They sat in the sand, still naked the both of them, as they watched the yacht go up in flames and then finally, blow up. It was better than any firework V had seen, the satisfaction of revenge was indeed sweet. As the boat sunk, V turned to Kerry. Just watching him was satisfaction enough. Gorgeous in the darkness with the orange light from the still burning pieces of the Seamurai and the pale light from the moon contrasting against his silver hair, the rose gold in his implants and the natural tan of his skin. In some way, Kerry still had a boyish look about him, especially when he smiled, even though his voice was rough from age and some less well-planned life choices. 

“This was fuckin’ wild.” Kerry said and V snorted.   
“Gonna walk home naked, now? It’ll be a feast for the paparazzi.”   
“Fuck ‘em!” Kerry shouted, “Got it sorted babe, don’t worry. This was just what I fuckin’ needed.”   
“Yeah?”   
“Mm… Thanks V.” Kerry leaned in and kissed him. “Eh, romantic as fuck, this. Fuck doin’ things by the book, you and me, V. We deserve another round.”

Yeah, V agreed wholeheartedly. However things went, regardless of who died first, him or Kerry, they deserved what they’d found with each other. There was nothing regular about it, nothing normal. But what had ever been fucking normal in V’s life to begin with? Deadbeat dad, dead mom and sis, criminal background and still a fucking criminal, making his living off of other people, their suffering and the suffering of those around them. He was a hired killer, for fuck’s sake - and Kerry knew, and didn’t care. That was life in NC, you took whatever you could get, and Kerry understood that. 

“Yeah,” V said, kissing Kerry back, “We fuckin’ do.”   
“C’mon, let’s get outta here, before the wind flips and we’re hit with the stink of that burning fucker.” 

Kerry had his car waiting not far off. Driving home in the nude was a first off for V, but he didn’t care. When they got home, they had a couple of beers and called for the tattoo artist who’d done Kerry’s right arm and he was able to come the same night, because who said no to Kerry Eurodyne?   
They each got a ring tattooed on their left ring finger. V got Kerry’s initials further down on the finger, and Kerry got his. A sealed deal they couldn’t back away from. It was etched into skin, real and no going back now. V loved it, it was perfect. They’d never marry, because who the fuck would want to? They were perfect like this, just together without the whole legal aspect of inheritance and shit. V had his own shit, and Kerry his. Emergency contacts were already in place, as well as information concerning insurance and all that boring stuff. V couldn’t care less. What he had would be divided between Kerry, Mama Welles and Judy in the case of his death. Hopefully, it wouldn’t come to that, but he didn’t want to think about that now, as he and Kerry toasted to their freedom, lying in bed and blasting music from the speakers.


	13. V - Flick the stitch

V held true to his word by helping Panam, even though she was still pissed off like a provoked rattle snake. She snapped and stung at every turn, demanding they search out the asshole who’d stolen her shit in the first place, the two of them taking on a whole gang alone. V wasn’t suicidal, and refused, which made her return to her infuriatingly juvenile behavior of refusing to answer his questions.   
When he was dropped off at their meeting point and got back into his car, he breathed a deep fucking sigh of relief as he took a moment to light a cigarette and just be glad that shit was over and done with. 

_”Damn, what a fine, feisty bitch.”_ Johnny said from beside him, biting his lower lip and hissing. _”Sure you won’t lend me your body for a little while? I’ll be sure to make your god awful behavior up to her.”_  
 _”Go fuck yourself Johnny.”_

He didn’t necessarily dislike Panam, she was fun when she wanted to, but when she was in a mood, she was fucking horrible to be around. She was stubborn and childish and all out a chore to deal with. Texting Rogue that the job was finished was satisfying and V started up the car, heading west towards Heywood. He had promised to drop by the El Coyote Cojo and Mama Welles. She’d seemed lonely after Jackie’s death and even though she and Misty had begun to get along better with time, V still wanted to look in on her from time to time. She had done so much for him since he turned up on her doorstep, behind the huge tank that was Jackie; and she never asked any damn questions, never gave him any shit for things he couldn’t help. Instead, she was the closest thing to a parent he’d ever had since his mom. 

Mama Welles was cleaning the bar, she explained, when he knocked on the doors. It was still early and the bar didn’t open until 6 pm. He was offered a beer and he sat down at the bar, chatting away with her. Before he left, he went over to Jackie’s altar which still stood, well looked after, with little trinkets belonging to or having been associated with him. Damn, even though V and Jackie had been so different, Jackie had been his closest friend for years, and the thought of him not being here anymore, it fucking hurt.   
He hoisted up a symbolic enny and put it on the altar, “For you, choom. See you in the major leagues.” 

As he said his goodbyes to Mama Welles, she ran back to the fridge and brought out two large plastic containers. “Talames and pozole for you and that amigo of yours, mi hijo. You are always too skinny.”   
Mama Welles was of the old, catholic way and for her to even acknowledge Kerry was a, V supposed, a step in the right direction. He was called a ‘friend’, a friend who V lived with, even though he could easily afford his own place, something Mama Welles knew very well. When she’d first learned of Kerry, she’d asked with no small hint of disgust if he’d had the same relationship with her son. V almost barfed at the thought, still.   
He didn’t let it get to him, Heywood was in many ways a very different world from the rest of NC; they chose their sins differently there, and two men fucking was, according to many, still a better reason to burn in hell than to kill each other. Considering the shit V had pulled, he guessed fucking men was the least reason he’d end up in the forever burning fires. 

Kissing her cheeks, he thanked her and left, putting the containers in his Avenger and driving home. He needed to work some more tonight, take care of biz in the city center and meeting up with Dino.   
Arriving in North Oak, V was surprised by the gathering of media from the Columbarium and up, watching with suspicion as he drove past them and continued up the swirling roads to the villa. He groaned when he noticed there were several news vans and reporters outside their gate.   
“Fuckin’ shit.” V growled, pulling up his phone and calling Kerry. “Hey, you home?”   
“No, why?”   
“There’s a fucking gathering of media outside the house. Can hardly get through.”   
“Fuck,” Kerry swore, grumbling. “Call for security before you go inside the gates. Don’t want any of those fuckers inside.”   
V beat his hand on the horn, making the reporters turn and look at him. He damned the fact he hadn’t bought a car with properly covered windows, his Avenger only had toned windows and with flashes, you could make out he was inside.   
“Right, yeah. I’ll call you when I’m inside. Gotta find out what the fuck is happening.”   
“Can tell ya right now…”, Kerry spoke and V could hear a TV in the background, “Kovachek has been found brutally beaten in the slums of Pacifica. He’s being investigated for dealing in XBD’s.”   
V had to swallow a laugh, “Oh yeah?”   
“That, and I’m suing him. ‘m with my lawyer right now. Shit’s stirring here too.”   
“Fuck.” V said, even though he felt this had turned out pretty decently. Dino had done a good job. XBD’s and a lawsuit, things didn’t look pretty for Kerry’s former manager. That, and there had been reports of the Seamurai sinking in the bay area, assailants unknown, but now, according to the news V could hear in the background from Kerry, the police suspected it had to do with covering up evidence of his XBD-dealings. “We’ll talk later babe, security his here.”   
“Uh, yeah. Be home in a few hours.”

V called Dino when he’d gotten inside the house. No way he was going out again tonight, not with those vultures outside. Dino understood and it wasn’t anything urgent in anyway. V thanked him choosing his words carefully over the holo and Dino looked equally satisfied with the situation as V.   
Searching the news on the net, V found all kinds of headlines. Media was going stir-crazy over it, and if anything, it would at least give Kerry some more publicity. With Dino having helped him, there was no way in hell that little trick he’d played on Kovachek would come back and bite him in the ass. He’d most likely spend a few cozy years in prison with NC’s finest, losing his lawsuit against Kerry, who had endless resources, where Kovachek’s would soon be seized, if they weren’t already. 

Tonight on News 54, LB Kovachek, former manager of infamous Night City rocker Kerry Eurodyne found battered in South Pacifica. NCPD confirms he was found in possession of illicit brain dances. We can also report that Eurodyne is now suing his former manager, claiming fraudulent behavior and misconduct, amongst other things. Stay tuned for more updates, here on News 54.

After the commercials, V saw that they showed footage taken just outside the house, a reporter standing by the gates, explaining the situation. They had footage from a fucking drone flying over the house, and V was now extremely thankful for the panorama windows which looked like steel from the outside. 

He switched off the TV and went and got a beer from the fridge, settling down in the upstairs living room, connection to the game station and figuring he could just relax for a bit before Kerry stormed inside, either screaming his head off or so happy he could skip. 

“V, I’m home!” Kerry shouted from downstairs and V paused the game he was playing. A childish, easy game about a horse called Roach.   
V got up and walked down the stairs, meeting Kerry where he stood in the kitchen, leaning over the counter, shaking his head.   
“What the fuck, V.” Kerry said, “This is your surprise?”   
“Mhm,” V nodded, standing beside Kerry and leaning back with his arms crossed over his chest. “Don’t know which is better, having the motherfucker sent to prison, or blowing his gonk yacht to pieces.”   
Kerry turned and grabbed V by the neck, kissing him so deeply V almost toppled over. As Kerry bit into his lower lip, V couldn’t help but to moan into Kerry’s mouth, the metallic taste of his own blood filling his mouth. V wasted no time, pulling at Kerry’s buckle and fly, taking him in hand and stroking him.   
“Fuck, V.” Kerry moaned as he left a trail of kisses along V’s neck and down his chest, as Kerry’s hand reached for V’s own pants. “The shit you pull, kid. Fuck, I want you.”   
V sank to his knees and got to work without another word. Eventually they ended up in their bed, Kerry on his knees as V fucked him until he mewled into the pillows, ignoring everything else. Kerry had set his phone on silent as soon as he stepped inside the house, and V’s phone were fuck knows where. 

Another day, and the media, like the vultures they were, had found another story to focus on for a few hours and V could finally leave the house. This time, he took Kerry’s ride - the huge Rayfield Aerondight. V liked driving it as it felt like floating on the asphalt and considering the size of the car, it was surprisingly fast and easy to manage.   
He drove into the city center, where he parked and took a walk to an underground garage. There, he paid the security a few eddies for their security to be shut off for two minutes while V stole a more subtle looking car and made his way to Dino. 

Dino met him at his hangout and they sat down, having a few drinks together and going over the job Dino wanted him to do. It was nothing expectational, but it was important for Dino and V had already agreed. He needed to off a former contact of Dino’s who was hauled up in his own safe house in the city center; a seedy club catering to those who preferred the real hardcore stuff, though nothing like the shit the Scavs were usually up to. Either way, V needed to wait until tonight and it’s not like he had anything else to do right then, so he hung around Dino’s place, taking it easy and listening to good music and talking. They talked a lot about how different the world had used to be, and Johnny listened in from the sidelines, nodding and smoking, cursing the corporate shitfest NC and the entire world had turned into.   
It was nice sitting in the club with Dino, there was no news anywhere and the place was off the grid enough no media would set their foot inside, apart from Nance maybe, who’d fucking gone off infiltrating Totentanz. The usual paparazzi however, stayed away, for which V was glad. 

When darkness had fallen, V exited through the backdoor and got into his stolen car. Getting into the club where his hit was hiding out was easy enough. V wasn’t recognized and could easily sneak his way up to the manager’s office where the fucker was hiding out. Before he even knew what was happening, V had a silenced gun pressed to the gonk’s head.   
“Dino sends his love, asshole.” V said before he pressed the trigger. 

Turns out the meathead had _a lot_ of eddies saved up for whatever the fuck in his safe, a safe that was easily cracked with the help of a quickhack, so V stuffed his pockets along with a damn plastic bag he found in a desk. Sure, inconspicuous as fuck leaving the place with a plastic bag filled with scratch - but V had no difficulties, winking to the bouncer as he left. 

Returning to Dino first thing, V gave him half of the eddies, which still meant V got the better half of a quarter of a million eddies to take home, along with the payment from Dino for the hit. 

Getting back to the parked Rayfield, V started it up and the news were on. Apparently more had been dug up around the whole fuckfest with Kovachek, and not all good. 

”Eurodyne, now suing his former manager accused of some epic corruption; nothing new when dealing with those Corpo-fuckers in my opinion; has now ended up in even more turmoil if you are to believe certain sources. The rocker apparently tried to flatline himself only a few months back, but has since then been seen with a young unknown man. Today, sources report leaked, rather raunchy images of Eurodyne with _another_ man, apparently taken only days past. Oh man, either Eurodyne’s a medial genius, or our choom’s got some issues. Well! We love him either way, Night City. Now, Tainted Overlord’s new single.”

V was holding the wheel so hard his knuckles turned white and Johnny sighed beside him.   
_”Fuck…”_ Johnny shook his head, _”Shouldn’t believe everything media says, but Kerry was known for fuckin’ everything that moved. It’s not like you didn’t know that.”_   
_”Shut the fuck up, Johnny.”_   
Johnny shrugged, _”Had a look inside his computer, ya know, when I found out about the kids. Might be this Filippino choom he’s been at it with for a while.”_   
_”What?”_ V frowned. Johnny had his own goddamned agenda when it came to every fucking thing, and V knew he was at best honest, but never truly trustable, no matter how much V had noticed himself softening to the gonk.   
_”Tried to get him to move in with him. Apparently, our Kerry was feelin’ lonely_ and _horny.”_ Johnny chuckled and held up his hands apologetically, _”Nothin’ you didn’t already know, right?”_   
V said nothing and put the gas to the floor as he drove towards North Oak. This was some major shit and V guessed he couldn’t really fault Kerry for seeking company, unless the fucker had gotten it into his mind V was just fine and dandy with him dippin’ his shit wherever he wanted while being with V. They’d sort of made promises to each other, but with all the damned shit going on, fuck - did you have to write contracts specifying ‘no fucking around’ for shit to be real? For shit to just work out the way _normal_ fucking relationships worked? 

Almost crashing into the gate, V stomped inside, finding the villa empty and Kerry gone. He checked his phone, seeing two missed calls from Kerry and a few messages. Johnny nodded towards one of the tablets lying around and V walked over to it. It was guarded with an easy enough password if you knew Kerry even the slightest and V was soon going through Kerry’s mail. He felt like an asshole, like a paranoid fucking shithead for doing it. And Johnny just stood by, leaning against the wall as he usual did. V knew what he did was wrong, but if Kerry was fucking him around, playing him - he needed to know. 

He found Ker’s messages to an Ariel Velasco, and V felt sick reading them. Not just Kerry’s desperation which was so fucking unbecoming, but also the fact that they’d kept writing. Nothing obviously untoward or anything, not recently in any case, but it was still there, and fuck knows what they’d messaged about when V didn’t know. V knew he needed to talk to Kerry about this shit, and still; all he wanted to do was run away - get out.   
“Fuck!” V leaned forward, holding his head in his hands as he just breathed. _”The fuck would he do this Johnny?”_  
 _”To be fair, you don’t know anything right now. But take it from one adulterer to another, it ain’t easy teaching an old dog new tricks.”_   
_”I’m not stickin’ around for this shit.”_ V said as he stood, heading down the stairs. He stopped as Kerry just walked inside, a strange look on his otherwise soft face, a face which now usually smiled easily, laughed. A face that hid too many years but showed none of it. A façade. 

“V”, Kerry said, putting his keys down and looking at him. “Didn’t answer your phone. Guess you’ve heard the news.”   
V’s lips twitched, but he remained quiet, just watching Kerry.   
Kerry sighed, raking his hand through his hair. “I’m sor-“   
It happened so fast V couldn’t have stopped it even if he’d been more levelheaded than he was during situations like these. V was normally kind of calm, not one to go off his head without reason, but, when too many emotions flew, too much stress, too much of every fucking thing, he lost it. A fine gift from his deadbeat dad, leaving him unable to handle things in a normal, grown up fucking way.   
V punched Kerry so hard in the face, he stumbled back - his hand flying to his bleeding nose, and before V could even begin to control himself - ignoring Johnny’s cries from somewhere in the distance - he flew on Kerry and brought him to the ground, his hands on Kerry’s throat.   
“Fuckin’ trusted you, and this is what ya do to me?” V hissed as Kerry lay on the floor beneath him, his hands trying to shield himself, “Fuck you Ker. You wanna fuck around, be my fucking guest!” 

Kerry, could handle himself. V knew this, normally. Kerry spat in his face, taking him off guard and bashed his skull against V’s, making V fall to the side, gripping his head in pain before Kerry had drawn a gun on him.   
“The fuck do you think I am, kid?!” Kerry shouted, pulling himself up to standing as V groaned, “You wanna believe all the shit the media spills, this ain’t gonna last another week.”   
“Fuck you, Kerry.” V spat, pulling himself up, staring at his lover before moving towards him, quickly overpowering him again, wrenching the gun out of Kerry’s hand. Kerry’s elbow crashed into V’s face and V fell back, Kerry’s arm still in his grip.   
“For what?!” Kerry shouted, trying to pull his arm out if V’s grip. “I didn’t fucking do anything, V!”   
“Read your fuckin’ mail, asshole!” V hissed, pushing at Kerry, who stilled. “Ah, hah, yeah, see? ‘Didn’t do anything’ - right. Fuck you Kerry. Go along, do whatever you want. I’ll be dead soon anyway, the fuck does it matter?”   
“Hey!” Kerry tried to grab V, but V backed up, slinking away, “V!” Kerry shouted, “Don’t you fuckin’ leave.”   
V didn’t care. He left.


End file.
